# Characterizing Discourse about COVID-19 Vaccines: A Reddit Version of the Pandemic Story

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2101.06321 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2101.06321/

## Key facts

- Cited by 4 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 15 Jan 2021.

## Built on by (most cited first, 4 of 4)

- [Misleading the Covid-19 vaccination discourse on Twitter: An exploratory study of infodemic around the pandemic](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2108.10735/) (2021)
- [Quantifying Public Response to COVID-19 Events: Introducing the Community Sentiment and Engagement Index](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2412.16925/) (2024)
- [Human Behavior in the Time of COVID-19: Learning from Big Data](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2303.13452/) (2023)
- [Beyond Sentiment: Leveraging Topic Metrics for Political Stance Classification](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2310.15429/) (2023)

## Abstract (arXiv)

It has been one year since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The good news is that vaccines developed by several manufacturers are being actively distributed worldwide. However, as more and more vaccines become available to the public, various concerns related to vaccines become the primary barriers that may hinder the public from getting vaccinated. Considering the complexities of these concerns and their potential hazards, this study aims to offer a clear understanding about different population groups' underlying concerns when they talk about COVID-19 vaccines, particular those active on Reddit. The goal is achieved by applying LDA and LIWC to characterizing the pertaining discourse with insights generated through a combination of quantitative and qualitative comparisons. Findings include: 1) during the pandemic, the proportion of Reddit comments predominated by conspiracy theories outweighed that of any other topics; 2) each subreddit has its own user bases, so information posted in one subreddit may not reach those from other subreddits; 3) since users' concerns vary across time and subreddits, communication strategies must be adjusted according to specific needs. The results of this study manifest challenges as well as opportunities in the process of designing effective communication and immunization programs.