The vast majority of adults in the Republic of Ireland have expressed a willingness to receive the Covid-19 vaccine, according to a recent survey conducted by Eurofound.
Only 10 per cent of Irish adults said they were very unlikely or rather unlikely to receive a vaccine, more than half the EU average (27 per cent).
Hesitancy was slightly higher among men (29 per cent) than it was among women (25 per cent), with the survey finding a strong association between vaccine hesitancy and social media use, particularly when social media was the person's main source of information.
Bulgaria reported the highest number of adults indicating hesitancy to receive the jab, where 61 per cent said they were very unlikely or rather unlikely to take it.
The study notes "an important east-west divide discernible across the Union", with member states in the east of the continent showing much higher levels of adults who are not intending to receive the vaccine.
Intention to receive the jab was over 60 per cent in most western member states, with the exception of Austria and France.
People aged 35-49 were the most hesitant age group across the EU, with 29 per cent saying they may not take the vaccine, compared to 26 per cent hesitancy among the preceding cohort and 27 per cent among the older cohort.
Students were found to be the least hesitant to receive the vaccine as only 13 per cent said they were very or rather unlikely to be inoculated.
