Vaccine Hesitancy | UW Grad Student Plays Key Role in UW Economists’ Pandemic Research HD

Madison Ashworth entered the University of Wyoming in 2015 after graduating from Star Valley High School, where she was a stellar student and athlete. She’s now well on her way to receiving a Ph.D. in economics from UW, where she has played a key role in cutting-edge research that has attracted national and international attention regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. Ashworth is part of the research team of Department of Economics Professors Todd Cherry, David Finnoff and Jay Shogren, Assistant Professor Stephen Newbold and Associate Professor Linda Thunstrom. The UW economists’ studies of the economic and health impacts of the pandemic, along with COVID-19 testing and vaccine hesitancy, were some of the first conducted on those topics. Their findings have helped inform public policy decisions in Wyoming, around the nation and beyond. Most recently, the researchers have documented levels of and reasons for vaccine hesitancy in Wyoming, as compared with the rest of the nation, and offered ideas to encourage vaccination among the state’s residents. “I am so lucky to get to work with such a great team,” Ashworth says. “As a graduate student, the attention our research has received has been a little overwhelming at times, but mostly it has been inspiring. To get the kind of widespread attention that our COVID-19 work has received is motivating and a helpful driver in coming up with even more policy-relevant research.” “Maddi has been absolutely indispensable to all the work we have done. And she was from the very start, despite the fact that she had virtually no experience with research,” Thunstrom says. “I don’t know how we could have pulled it off without her.” Among the group’s findings: -- Aggressive social distancing policies used to slow the spread of COVID-19 have been economically justified, with the benefits of those policies in lives saved outweighing the economic costs by an estimated $5.2 trillion. -- Physical distancing measures to slow the spread of virus appear to have dramatically reduced the number of deaths that would have occurred otherwise. -- Widespread, voluntary testing to control the spread of the virus was likely to be successful because a strong majority of people were willing to be tested. -- One year ago, about 20 percent of Americans said they would likely decline to receive COVID vaccines after they were developed, making it difficult to achieve herd immunity against the virus. Her biggest takeaway from the team’s research? “Clear, consistent messages that emphasize the benefits of the vaccine are super important,” she says. “Along those lines, making sure the information is coming from a trusted source is also important.” The UW research team is now studying how to encourage COVID-19 vaccination among UW students, exploring what types of incentives will be best to promote the vaccines when students return to campus in the fall. To find more information on UW Department of Economics, visit: http://www.uwyo.edu/economi