Can Financial Incentives Reduce Declared COVID-19 Vaccine Refusal? Survey Evidence from Poland

Aim: To examine the declared potential of financial public-policy instruments among Polish vaccine refusers and identify behavioural factors associated with vaccination status. Methodology: A cross-sectional CAWI survey (Poland, 2021, N = 800) distinguished four vaccination attitude levels. Declared responses to financial instruments were tested with non-parametric methods, incentive susceptibility with rank correlation and linear regression, and vaccination status with exploratory models. Findings: The vaccination lottery was rated low across all groups. Differences among the vaccinated, the hesitant, and those intending to get vaccinated were not significant. For vaccine refusers, no tested financial incentive was rated as likely to change their reported decision; loss-framed incentives were rated higher than gain-framed ones, yet both remained near the lower end of the scale. Implications: The results indicated the limited declared potential of individual financial incentives among vaccine refusers, raising questions about the efficiency of public spending for this group. Originality/value: The article adds a behavioural perspective to research on COVID-19 vaccination incentives. Refusers placed little importance on financial benefits, while exploratory models linked vaccination status to vaccine safety beliefs, severe COVID-19 in someone close, and political identification.