Background

The University of Maryland Prevention Research Center (UMD-PRC) is dedicated to research, service and training around issues of mental health among LGBTQ+ communities. The UMD-PRC and the Horowitz Center for Health Literacy worked on a CDC funded project to contribute to COVID-19 vaccine confidence from May 2021 to May 2022. We worked with CenterLink centers to implement behavioral nudges to increase vaccine confidence and remove barriers to accessing the COVID-19 vaccine.

Behavioral nudges are small interventions that attempt to guide a person into making the desired decision, in this case getting the COVID vaccine. Our nudges took the form of positive reinforcement or suggestions that attempt to increase vaccine confidence or remove barriers to accessing the vaccine. We designed these nudges as interventions that address barriers to the COVID vaccine.