The Relationship Between Parents' E-Health Literacy and Attitudes Toward Childhood Vaccination: A Descriptive-Correlational Study
Public Health Nursing, vol.43, no.1, pp.107-115, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, SSCI, Scopus)
- Publication Type: Article / Technical Note
- Volume: 43 Issue: 1
- Publication Date: 2026
- Doi Number: 10.1111/phn.70032
- Journal Name: Public Health Nursing
- Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, CINAHL, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Psycinfo, Public Affairs Index, Academic Search Ultimate (EBSCO), Biomedical Reference Collection: Corporate Edition (EBSCO), Health Research Premium Collection (ProQuest), Sociology Source Ultimate (EBSCO)
- Page Numbers: pp.107-115
- Keywords: childhood, e-health literacy, nursing, parents, vaccination attitudes
- Erzincan Binali Yildirim University Affiliated: Yes
Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to examine the relationship between parents' e-health literacy and attitudes toward childhood vaccination. Design: A descriptive-correlational study. Sample: The study included 396 parents of children aged 0 to 72 months, recruited between May and December 2022. Measurements: Data were collected using the Demographic Information Form, the E-Health Literacy Scale (E-HLS), and the Caregiver Vaccination Attitudes Scale (CVAS). Analyses were performed using SPSS (version 24). Results: The mean age of the parents was 30.13 ± 5.22 years. E-HLS scores differed significantly by education level (F = 6.914, p < 0.001, η2 = 0.034), with higher scores among university-educated parents (29.72 ± 5.99) compared to those with secondary (26.86 ± 6.64) or primary education (27.48 ± 5.98). Economic status also showed significant differences in E-HLS (KW = 6.982, p = 0.03, ε2 = 0.012); parents with good economic status (29.54 ± 5.89) scored higher than those with poor status (26.35 ± 4.32). A statistically significant but weak positive correlation was found between CVAS and E-HLS (r = 0.172, p < 0.001), indicating a small effect size. Conclusions: This study showed that parents with higher e-health literacy tend to have more positive attitudes toward childhood vaccination. However, the relationship between these two variables was weak, suggesting only a limited association between e-health literacy and vaccination attitudes. In addition, parents with higher education and better economic status had higher e-health literacy scores. Due to the weak correlation observed, it is important for nurses to understand that increasing e-health literacy alone is unlikely to produce significant improvements in parental vaccination attitudes. Despite the weak correlation, these results may help guide future research exploring the broader context of vaccine attitudes among parents.