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Peer-reviewedCC BYPreventive Medicine Reports

Beyond vaccine hesitancy: Vaccine fatigue and sustained engagement with vaccination

  • Niharika Rustagi1
  • Eugene Tay2
  • Tikki Pangestu2
  • Nick Sevdalis2
  • Tippi Mak2
  1. 1Corresponding author.
  2. 2Centre for Behavioural and Implementation Science Interventions (BISI), Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, 10 Medical Drive, MD11, Level 2, Clinical Research Centre, 117597, Singapore
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Abstract

Objective: To explore vaccine fatigue as a potentially important psychological state which can affect sustained engagement and adherence with vaccination. Methods: This commentary integrates emerging vaccine fatigue literature with established behavioural science literature on message fatigue, information overload, and information avoidance. Results: We propose vaccine fatigue as a potential dynamic psychological state of exhaustion and declining motivation to continue engaging with vaccination decisions, including for individuals broadly supportive of vaccines. The model separates antecedents, including decision and information burden, from the construct of fatigue and from downstream behaviours such as avoidance, postponement, and reduction in uptake. Vaccine fatigue is positioned as complementary to, rather than synonymous with, vaccine hesitancy, and criteria are set out for distinguishing it from declining perceived benefit and from system-level changes in vaccine access. Conclusions: Examining vaccine fatigue as a construct, with its own research agenda and measurement approaches, could improve understanding and tailoring of interventions that sustain engagement with vaccination.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{rustagi2026beyond,
  title = {{Beyond vaccine hesitancy: Vaccine fatigue and sustained engagement with vaccination}},
  author = {Niharika Rustagi and Eugene Tay and Tikki Pangestu and Nick Sevdalis and Tippi Mak},
  journal = {Preventive Medicine Reports},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.1016/j.pmedr.2026.103669},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2026.103669},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Beyond vaccine hesitancy: Vaccine fatigue and sustained engagement with vaccination
AU  - Niharika Rustagi
AU  - Eugene Tay
AU  - Tikki Pangestu
AU  - Nick Sevdalis
AU  - Tippi Mak
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/16
JO  - Preventive Medicine Reports
DO  - 10.1016/j.pmedr.2026.103669
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2026.103669
AB  - Objective: To explore vaccine fatigue as a potentially important psychological state which can affect sustained engagement and adherence with vaccination. Methods: This commentary integrates emerging vaccine fatigue literature with established behavioural science literature on message fatigue, information overload, and information avoidance. Results: We propose vaccine fatigue as a potential dynamic psychological state of exhaustion and declining motivation to continue engaging with vaccination decisions, including for individuals broadly supportive of vaccines. The model separates antecedents, including decision and information burden, from the construct of fatigue and from downstream behaviours such as avoidance, postponement, and reduction in uptake. Vaccine fatigue is positioned as complementary to, rather than synonymous with, vaccine hesitancy, and criteria are set out for distinguishing it from declining perceived benefit and from system-level changes in vaccine access. Conclusions: Examining vaccine fatigue as a construct, with its own research agenda and measurement approaches, could improve understanding and tailoring of interventions that sustain engagement with vaccination.
SN  - 2211-3355
ER  -