African-American parents’ and daughters’ beliefs about HPV infection and the HPV vaccine

Objective: To increase our understanding about the health beliefs of African-American parents and their daughters toward HPV infection and HPV vaccine acceptance. Methods: The Health Belief Model was used as a guiding framework. Principles of grounded theory, theoretical sampling, and constant comparison analysis were used to qualitatively analyze data generated from personal interviews of African-American parents (n = 30) and their 12- to 17-year-old daughters (n = 34). Results: Mothers and daughters perceived low susceptibility to HPV infection and perceived the HPV vaccine as beneficial in protecting against genital warts and cervical cancer. Compared to daughters, parents placed particular emphasis on the vaccine's protection against genital warts. A major HPV vaccine acceptance barrier among parents and daughters was the politicization of the HPV vaccine by government figures. In addition, concerns about unknown side effects, safety, and effectiveness of HPV vaccination emerged. Cues to action varied among parents and daughters, and self-efficacy was higher among parents than daughters. Conclusion: Understanding the health beliefs that promote HPV vaccine acceptance, while identifying and addressing beliefs that are barriers among parents and daughters, will assist in the development of appropriate HPV vaccine promotion initiatives for African-American parents and daughters.