Quality, Reliability, and Content Evaluation of YouTube Videos on Childhood Vaccines

Öz

Objective: In recent years, the growing hesitancy toward childhood vaccines, along with pronounced temporal and regional differences, has made the rapid dissemination of accurate and reliable information imperative. Digital media, particularly the video sharing platform YouTube, has become an important source for parents seeking health-related information. This study aimed to evaluate the content quality, reliability, and viewer engagement levels of YouTube videos related to childhood vaccines. The videos were assessed based on criteria such as the accuracy of the information provided, scientific basis, content richness, and audience engagement. This evaluation will understand the extent to which parents can access accurate and adequate information about childhood vaccines via YouTube. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional and descriptive study quantitatively analyzed Turkish-language YouTube videos on childhood vaccines. On February 13, 2025, a search using predefined keywords identified 239 videos. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 96 videos were selected for analysis. Video sources, content types, and information reliability were assessed using the modified DISCERN scale and the Global Quality Scale (GQS). Data such as the number of views, video duration (in minutes), days since upload, number of likes, and view rate were recorded in Microsoft Excel® 2021 and analyzed using IBM SPSS V27. Chi-square tests were used for categorical variables, while Mann–Whitney U and KruskalWallis tests were applied to non-normally distributed data. To ensure reliability, two independent researchers evaluated a random sample of 10 videos, and the intraclass correlation coefficient was calculated. Results: The mean reliability score of the 96 analyzed videos, measured using the modified DISCERN scale, was 2.99 ± 1.36. The mean GQS score was 3.70 ± 1.31, with 40.6% of the videos rated excellent quality and 17.7% as good quality. Video duration showed a positive and significant correlation with both the GQS score (r = 0.500, p < 0.001) and the DISCERN reliability score (r = 0.497, p < 0.001). Longer videos with higher numbers of likes and comments were perceived by users as having higher quality and reliability. Conclusion: YouTube videos on childhood vaccines serve as an important source of information for parents and the public. As the video length increases, both information reliability and content quality tend to improve. Producing scientifically based content by healthcare professionals can facilitate access to reliable information on vaccination. To counter vaccinerelated misinformation, health authorities should support verified content and evaluate its long-term impact.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Immunization
• Childhood vaccines
• YouTube
• DISCERN scale
• Global Quality Scale (GQS)
• Social media
• Vaccine communication

Kaynakça

1. Greenwood, B.: The contribution of vaccination to global health: past, present and future. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 369, 20130433 (2014). doi:10.1098/rstb.2013.0433 google scholar
2. Shattock, A.J., Johnson, H.C., Sim, S.Y., Carter, A., Lambach, P., Hutubessy, R.C.W., Thompson, K.M., Badizadegan, K., Lambert, B., Ferrari, M.J., Jit, M., Fu, H., Silal, S.P., Hounsell, R.A., White, R.G., Mosser, J.F., Gaythorpe, K.A.M., Trotter, C.L., Lindstrand, A., O’Brien, K.L., Bar-Zeev, N.: Contribution of vaccination to improved survival and health: modeling 50 years of the Expanded Program on Immunization. The Lancet. 403, 2307-2316 (2024). doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(24)00850-X google scholar
3. Durach, F., Buturoiu, R., Craiu, D., Cazacu, C., Bargaoanu, A.: Crisis of confidence in vaccination and the role of social media. European Journal of Pediatric Neurology. 36, 84-92 (2022). doi:10.1016/j.ejpn.2021.12.009 google scholar
4. Dube, E., Ward, J.K., Verger, P., MacDonald, N.E.: Vaccine hesitancy, acceptance, and anti-vaccination: Trends and future prospects for public health. Annu Rev Public Health. 42, 175-191 (2021). doi: 10.1146/annurev-publhealth-090419-102240 google scholar
5. Dube E, Vivion M, MacDonald, N.E.: Vaccine hesitancy, vaccine refusal and the anti-vaccine movement: influence, impact and implications. Expert Rev Vaccines. 14, 99-117 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1586/14760584.2015.964212 google scholar
6. MacDonald, N.E.: Vaccine hesitancy: Definition, scope and determinants. Vaccine. 33, 4161-4164 (2015). doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2015.04.036 google scholar
7. Jarrett, C., Wilson, R., O’Leary, M., Eckersberger, E., Larson, H.J.: Strategies for addressing vaccine hesitancy-A systematic review. Vaccine. 33, 4180-4190 (2015). doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2015.04.040 google scholar
8. Wilson, S.L., Wiysonge, C.: Social media and vaccine hesitancy. BMJ Glob Health. 5, e004206 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2020-004206 google scholar

9. Higgins, D.M., Moss, A., Blackwell, S., O’Leary, S.T.: The COVID-19 Pandemic and Parental Attitudes Toward Routine Childhood Vaccines. Pediatrics. 152, (2023). https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2023-062927 google scholar
10. Korda, H., Itani, Z.: Harnessing social media for health promotion and behavior change. Health Promot Pract. 14, 15-23 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1177/ 1524839911405850 google scholar
11. Aksakal, F.N.B.: Aşı İletişimi. Nobel, Ankara (2022) google scholar
12. Garett R, Young, S.D.: Online misinformation and vaccine hesitancy. Transl Behav Med. 11, 2194-2199 (2021). doi: 10.1093/tbm/ibab128 google scholar
13. Dube, E., Laberge, C., Guay, M., Bramadat, P., Roy, R., Bettinger, J.A.: Vaccine hesitancy. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 9, 1763-1773 (2013). https://doi.org/10.4161/ hv.24657 google scholar
14. Betsch, C., Brewer, N.T., Brocard, P., Davies, P., Gaissmaier, W., Haase, N., Leask, J., Renkewitz, F., Renner, B., Reyna, V.F., Rossmann, C., Sachse, K., Schachinger, A., Siegrist, M., Stryk, M.: Opportunities and challenges of Web 2.0 for vaccination decisions. Vaccine. 30, 3727-3733 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vaccine.2012. 02.025 google scholar
15. Tian, Y.: Organ Donation on Web 2.0: Content and Audience Analysis of Organ Donation Videos on YouTube. Health Commun. 25, 238-246 (2010). https://doi. org/10.1080/10410231003698911 google scholar Top Websites Ranking: Most Visited Websites In The World, https://www. similarweb.com/top-websites/ google scholar
16. Aslam, S.: YouTube by the Numbers: Stats, Demographics & Fun Facts, https:// www.omnicoreagency.com/youtube-statistics google scholar
17. Nason K, Donnelly A, Duncan, H.F.: YouTube as a patient-information source for root canal treatment. Int Endod J. 49, 1194-1200 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1111/ iej.12575 google scholar
18. Chen, H.-M., Hu, Z.-K., Zheng, X.-L., Yuan, Z.-S., Xu, Z.-B., Yuan, L.-Q., Perez, V.A.D.J., Yuan, K., Orcholski, M., Liao, X.-B.: Effectiveness of YouTube as a Source of Medical Information on Heart Transplantation. Interact J Med Res. 2, e28 (2013). doi:10.2196/ijmr.2669 google scholar
19. Al-Silwadi FM, Gill DS, Petrie A, Cunningham, S.J.: Effect of social media in improving knowledge among patients having fixed appliance orthodontic treatment: A single-center randomized controlled trial. American Journal of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics. 148, 231-237 (2015). https://doi.org/ 10.1016/j.ajodo.2015.03.029 google scholar
20. Sıngh, A.G., Singh, S., Singh, P.P.: YouTube for Information on Rheumatoid Arthritis—A Wakeup Call? J Rheumatol. 39, 899-903 (2012). https://doi.org/10. 3899/jrheum.111114 google scholar
21. Charnock, D., Shepperd, S., Needham, G., Gann, R.: DISCERN: an instrument for judging the quality of written consumer health information on treatment choices. J Epidemiol Community Health (1978). 53, 105-111 (1999). doi: 10.1136/ jech.53.2.105 google scholar
22. Hassona Y, Taimeh D, Marahleh A, Scully, C.: YouTube as a source of information on mouth (oral) cancer. Oral Dis. 22, 202-208 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1111/odi. 12434 google scholar
23. Bernard, A., Langille, M., Hughes, S., Rose, C., Leddin, D., Veldhuyzen van Zanten, S.: A systematic review of patient inflammatory bowel disease information resources on the World Wide Web. Am J Gastroenterol. 102, 2070-2077 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1572-0241.2007.01325.x google scholar
24. Bolac, R., Ozturk, Y., Yildiz, E.: Assessment of the quality and reliability of YouTube videos on Fuch’s endothelial corneal dystrophy. Beyoglu Eye Journal. 7(2), 134-139 (2022). doi:10.14744/bej.2022.90277 google scholar
25. Cakmak, G.: Evaluation of Scientific Quality of YouTube Video Content Related to Umbilical Hernia. Cureus. (2021). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.14675 google scholar
26. Karagoz, B., Bakir, M., Kececi, T.: Evaluation of the accuracy and quality of information in videos about lateral epicondylitis shared on internet video sharing services. Cureus. (2022). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.22583 google scholar
27. Steeb, T., Reinhardt, L., Harlab, M., Heppt, M.V., Meier, F., Berking, C.: Assessment of the Quality, Understandability, and Reliability of YouTube Videos as a Source of Information on Basal Cell Carcinoma: Web-Based Analysis. JMIR Cancer. 8, e29581 (2022). https://doi.org/10.2196/29581 google scholar
28. Ekram S, Debiec KE, Pumper MA, Moreno, M.A.: Content and Commentary: HPV Vaccine and YouTube. J Pediatr Adolesc Gynecol. 32, 153-157 (2019). doi:10.1016/ j.jpag.2018.11.001 google scholar
29. Hernândez-Garcîa, I., Gimenez-Jülvez, T.: YouTube as a source of influenza vaccine information in Spanish. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 18, 727 (2021). doi:10.3390/ijerph18020727 google scholar
30. Briones, R., Nan, X., Madden, K., Waks, L.: When Vaccines Go Viral: An Analysis of HPV Vaccine Coverage on YouTube. Health Commun. 27, 478-485 (2012). https:// doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2011.610258 google scholar
31. Yuksel, B., Cakmak, K.: Healthcare information on YouTube: Pregnancy and COVID-19. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics. 150, 189-193 (2020). doi:10.1002/ijgo.13246 google scholar
32. Wilson K, Atkinson K, Deeks, S.: Opportunities for using new technologies to increase vaccine confidence. Expert Rev Vaccines. 13, 969-977 (2014). https:// doi.org/10.1586/14760584.2014.928208 google scholar
33. Wilson, K., Keelan, J.: Social Media and the Empowering of Opponents of Medical Technologies: The Case of Anti-Vaccinationism. J Med Internet Res. 15, e103 (2013). doi:10.2196/jmir.2409 google scholar
34. Wilson K, Atkinson K, Deeks, S.: Opportunities for using new technologies to increase vaccine confidence. Expert Rev Vaccines. 13, 969-977 (2014). https:// doi.org/10.1586/14760584.2014.928208 google scholar
35. Keelan, J., Pavri-Garcia, V., Tomlinson, G., Wilson, K.: YouTube as a Source of Information on Immunization: A Content Analysis. JAMA. 298, 2481 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.298.21.2482 google scholar
36. Ward JK, Peretti-Watel P, Verger, P.: Vaccine criticism on the internet: Propositions for future Kata, A.: Anti-vaccine activists, Web 2.0, and the postmodern paradigm-An overview of tactics and tropes used Online by the anti-vaccination movement. Vaccine. 30, 3778-3789 (2012). https://doi.org/10. 1016/j.vaccine.2011.11.112 google scholar
37. Walter, D., Ophir, Y., Lokmanoglu, A.D., Pruden, M.L.: Vaccine discourse in white nationalist online communication: A mixed-methods computational approach. Soc Sci Med. 298, 114859 (2022). doi:10.1016/j.socscimed.2022.114859 google scholar
38. Covolo, L., Ceretti, E., Passeri, C., Boletti, M., Gelatti, U.: What arguments on vaccinations run through YouTube videos in Italy? A content analysis. Hum Vaccin Immunother. 13, 1693-1699 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1080/21645515.2017. 1306159 google scholar
39. Abul-Fottouh, D., Song, M.Y., Gruzd, A.: Examining algorithmic biases in YouTube’s recommendations of vaccine videos. Int J Med Inform. 140, 104175 (2020). doi:10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2020.104175 google scholar
40. Yiannakoulias, N., Slavik, C.E., Chase, M.: Expressions of pro- and anti-vaccine sentiment on YouTube. Vaccine. 37, 2057-2064 (2019). doi:10.1016/ j.vaccine.2019.03.001 google scholar
41. Elkin, L.E., Pullon, S.R.H., Stubbe, M.H.: ‘Should I vaccinate my child?” comparing the displayed stances of vaccine information retrieved from Google, Facebook and YouTube. Vaccine. 38, 2771-2778 (2020). doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2020.02.041 google scholar