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Vaccination nudges: A study of pre-booked COVID-19 vaccinations in Sweden

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  • Carl Bonander
  • Mats Ekman
  • Niklas Jakobsson

Abstract

A nudge changes people's actions without removing their options or altering their incentives. During the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, the Swedish Region of Uppsala sent letters with pre-booked appointments to inhabitants aged 16-17 instead of opening up manual appointment booking. Using regional and municipal vaccination data, we document a higher vaccine uptake among 16- to 17-year-olds in Uppsala compared to untreated control regions (constructed using the synthetic control method as well as neighboring municipalities). The results highlight pre-booked appointments as a strategy for increasing vaccination rates in populations with low perceived risk.

Suggested Citation

  • Carl Bonander & Mats Ekman & Niklas Jakobsson, 2022. "Vaccination nudges: A study of pre-booked COVID-19 vaccinations in Sweden," Papers 2202.04931, arXiv.org, revised Jul 2022.
    • Handle: RePEc:arx:papers:2202.04931
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    Cited by:

    1. Carl Bonander & Mats Ekman & Niklas Jakobsson, 2023. "When do default nudges work?," Oxford Open Economics, Oxford University Press, vol. 2, pages 391-425.
    2. Upravitelev, A., 2023. "Efficacious methods of restraining COVID-19 through behavioral public policy," Journal of the New Economic Association, New Economic Association, vol. 61(4), pages 203-222.

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