Contents of Japanese pro- and anti-HPV vaccination websites: A text mining analysis

Tsuyoshi Okuhara; Hirono Ishikawa; Masahumi Okada; Mio Kato; Takahiro Kiuchi

doi:10.1016/j.pec.2017.09.014

Contents of Japanese pro- and anti-HPV vaccination websites: A text mining analysis

Patient Educ Couns. 2018 Mar;101(3):406-413. doi: 10.1016/j.pec.2017.09.014. Epub 2017 Sep 23.

Authors

Tsuyoshi Okuhara¹, Hirono Ishikawa², Masahumi Okada³, Mio Kato⁴, Takahiro Kiuchi⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Health Communication, School of Public Health, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. Electronic address: okuhara-ctr@umin.ac.jp.
² Department of Health Communication, School of Public Health, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. Electronic address: hirono-tky@umin.ac.jp.
³ Department of Health Communication, School of Public Health, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. Electronic address: sokada-tuk@umin.ac.jp.
⁴ Department of Health Communication, School of Public Health, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. Electronic address: mkato-ctr@umin.ac.jp.
⁵ Department of Health Communication, School of Public Health, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. Electronic address: tak-kiuchi@umin.ac.jp.

PMID: 29031425
DOI: 10.1016/j.pec.2017.09.014

Abstract

Objective: In Japan, the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination rate has sharply fallen to nearly 0% due to sensational media reports of adverse events. Online anti-HPV-vaccination activists often warn readers of the vaccine's dangers. Here, we aimed to examine frequently appearing contents on pro- and anti-HPV vaccination websites.

Methods: We conducted online searches via two major search engines (Google Japan and Yahoo! Japan). Targeted websites were classified as "pro," "anti," or "neutral" according to their claims, with the author(s) classified as "health professionals," "mass media," or "laypersons." We then conducted a text mining analysis.

Results: Of the 270 sites analyzed, 16 contents were identified. The most frequently appearing contents on pro websites were vaccine side effects, preventable effect of vaccination, and cause of cervical cancer. The most frequently appearing contents on anti websites were vaccine side effects, vaccine toxicity, and girls who suffer from vaccine side effects. Main disseminators of each content according to the author's expertise were also revealed.

Conclusion: Pro-HPV vaccination websites should supplement deficient contents and respond to frequent contents on anti-HPV websites.

Practice implications: Effective tactics are needed to better communicate susceptibility to cervical cancer, frequency of side effects, and responses to vaccine toxicity and conspiracy theories.

Keywords: Anti-vaccination movement; Content analysis; HPV vaccine; Human papillomavirus vaccine; Internet; Online information; Text mining.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Anti-Vaccination Movement*
Data Mining*
Female
Humans
Internet*
Japan
Papillomavirus Infections / prevention & control*
Papillomavirus Vaccines* / adverse effects
Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / prevention & control*

Substances

Papillomavirus Vaccines