Homeschoolers’ Vaccination Perception and Rate

A Comparison with a Public/Private School Population

Abstract

Background and Purpose: School vaccination laws have played a critical role in ensuring the success of the United States' immunization policy. Recent outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases (VPDs) in homeschool populations have raised concerns that homeschoolers are under-vaccinated. Little vaccination-related research has been conducted within the homeschool population. To fill the void in the literature, this study explored homeschooling parents' opinions regarding vaccination and examined the vaccination rates of their children in comparison to public/private school population. Methods: A convenience sample of 137 homeschool and public/private school parents in Washington state participated in a 36-question cross-sectional online survey. Results: The homeschooling parents reported significantly lower vaccination rates of their children, lower perceived benefits of vaccination, lower perceived susceptibility to VPDs if unvaccinated, and higher perceived barriers in comparison to the public/private school parents. Overall the participants expressed a preference for less governmental regulation of vaccinations, though homeschooling parents express an even stronger preference for same. Conclusions: Homeschool and public/private school population differed in the vaccination rate and vaccination related opinions. Further research among homeschool population and examination of immunization policy is needed.