The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a huge toll on just about every aspect of our lives. We’ve all been affected financially, emotionally, and physically. And the risk to our long-term health and wellbeing is significant. 

So much attention has been given to the physical, emotional, and financial impact of both the illness and the restrictions that have been put into place for public safety. And we know that our activity patterns and lifestyles have changed drastically. 

To really get a sense of how these changes have impacted our members and your activity levels, we took a look at average daily step counts before and during the pandemic. 

We looked at Fitbit step counts for 74,000 Evidation Members from October 1, 2018 to January 31, 2022. 

What we found wasn’t really surprising, but it did leave us with a few questions. 

Has Covid-19 Affected Step Counts?

We looked at the average daily step counts of our members during the last week in January for the two years of the current coronavirus pandemic (2021 & 2022) and the same week in the previous two years. 

As you can see in the chart below, step counts were much lower (around 800 steps per day) during the pandemic than before.

But, step counts always tend to go down over the holidays. That’s why we pulled steps from the last week in January, when they traditionally go back to pre holiday levels.

So, to be sure the decrease wasn’t caused solely by the holidays, we compared the step counts from January (shown above) to those in early October, before the holiday dip. 

Since we also see an increase in COVID cases (and fear of COVID-related risks) during the holidays, we wanted to know what effect that might have on established patterns. 

Is the drop in steps because of COVID? Or just because of the holidays?

Some of the decrease in steps is due to the holidays. But if we compare the levels to prior years, we can see that the past two Januarys (2021 and 2022), which were heavily impacted by the coronavirus, had a much bigger decrease in steps compared to a baseline taken in October of the previous year.

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As you can see from the chart below, we see dips in step counts during the holidays in all four years (before and during COVID). 

But, the step counts are lower in general from 2020 to 2022 than in preCOVID years. And, when they dip for the holidays, they take longer to get back to preholidays levels during 2020-2022 compared to preCOVID years. 

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We can also see that the drop in steps starting late December 2022 matches with the Google Trends interest score for the search term "COVID" which peaked in January 2022.

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That means that worry about COVID and COVID-related interest peaked at the same time the step counts were at their lowest point. 

Are vaccinated people taking more steps?

Since it seems that concern over COVID is related to the decrease in steps, we wanted to understand if people who are vaccinated or live in areas where more of the population is vaccinated are moving more. 

What we found is that while step counts are lower overall than in preCOVID years, regardless of vaccination rates, states with higher vaccination rates tend to have higher step counts on average. 

What does that mean?

It means that people in states with higher vaccination rates are walking more than those in states with lower vaccination rates, but still not as much as they were before the pandemic. 

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Why are step counts lower during Covid?

We can’t know for certain why people are moving less during COVID, but there is no shortage of information out there on the subject. 

More people are staying home, avoiding public places like the gym or large events. Many are still not leaving their homes except for when absolutely necessary. Some are dealing with mental health or financial challenges that may impact their ability to find the motivation to match their previous levels of activity. 

What is certain is that while step counts always fluctuate based on a variety of factors, the current pandemic is definitely having an impact as well, whatever the reason. 

In an earlier article called “What is Health Research?”, we shared some brief general information about what health research is and what it looks like. Now, let’s cover the types of research studies that Evidation Studies (formerly Achievement Studies) focuses on.

What types of Studies can people participate in? 

There are several ways you can participate in research with Evidation Studies, including:

Single Surveys 

Yes! It is as simple as it sounds. We often ask our participants to answer just a single survey. In addition, we might ask you to share your recent activity data (from your activity tracker - like a Fitbit, Garmin, Apple Watch, etc). This information already exists in your activity tracker, so it’s quick and easy to share, if you choose to do so. Remember - your activity data belongs to you! We do not use it for research purposes unless you say we can!

Observational Studies

We do many observational studies, and they can range in effort and length from one week all the way to several years long. We often ask you to answer surveys about your health and health experience at regular times (such as once per day or once per month). We may also ask you to share your activity tracker data with us, or complete a lab test in the comfort of your own home (like a quick and easy swab of your nose or cheek).

Below, you can learn more about some of the highlights of our research!

We live and breathe ‘Decentralized’ research

The majority of our research is decentralized, which means people can participate in studies from where they are, locally. People who typically would not be able to participate in health research at big hospitals and universities can have the chance to join an online study from the comfort of their home. 

This allows Evidation Studies to invite a diverse group of people to participate, regardless of their geographic location. 

We do, occasionally, ask participants to travel to a local laboratory or care provider - but this is clearly explained before anyone chooses to participate. We make sure that any requests like these are as quick and easy to complete as possible.

What does ‘PGHD’ or ‘Person-Generated Health Data’ have to do with it? 

Evidation Studies uses what is called ‘Person-Generated Health Data’ (PGHD). PGHD is information from a person, like responses from surveys, activity and sleep data from wearables, and more! 

PGHD can:

• help researchers better understand health on an individual level. 
• contain clues to help find patterns within groups of people that live with a similar disease. 
• capture information beyond what we remember to tell our healthcare providers at our regular visits. 
• help researchers explain “How does this disease impact your everyday life?” and “How can we detect and treat this illness more effectively?” 

We look at all sorts of PGHD to understand what a person’s health experience is like outside the doctor’s office. This includes expertise in looking at data from common wearables like a watch or activity tracker or from more unique sources like air quality sensors.

We are proud of the research we conduct and look forward to the incredible ways our work contributes to health science going forward. 

Want to know more about any of our Evidation Studies and how to get involved? Reach out to us at study@evidation.com and one of our friendly team members can help you get started. 

If you want additional general information on health research, we recommend checking out the following public resources: 

• U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Office for Human Research Protections
• FDA, Clinical Trials and Human Subject Protection
• National Institutes of Health (NIH), Educational Resources
• Clinical Research Resource HUB, Resources for Participants

We’re midway through flu season, and our Flu Monitoring on Evidation Community is growing! In our first month, we were 100,000 strong, and now, more than 160,000 people from all 50 states have come together in the spirit of healthier living.

The 2021-2022 Flu Season

Even in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, we can’t lose focus on the flu. This year, we saw an uptick in flu-like illness after the holidays. This is shown by the increase of red on the map to the right.

Compared to this week last year, our country’s rates of flu-like illness are up drastically. This is shown in the abundance of green states in the map on the left, and the increase in yellow, orange and red states in the map on the right. Not seeking treatment can lead to increased spread in our families, social circles, and communities.

‍Slowing the spread 

These trends are worthy of our attention, and the Flu Monitoring on Evidation community is taking them seriously - especially by continuing to contribute activity data and reporting flu-like symptoms. 

Since our last community update in early December 2021, more than 37,000 community members have reported flu-like symptoms. Among them, Evidation identified nearly 13,200 cases of flu-like symptoms - up from 1600 in November. 

This early identification is possible because of you - our dedicated community. When you share your activity data and report symptoms, we can support you with insights that can prompt you to check in with your health and, help you make informed health decisions.

Here’s how it works

We look for changes in your activity data and alert you when we see a change that might mean you’re feeling under the weather. We’re interested in the relationship between changes in activity patterns and flu-like symptoms. 

Here’s what to look for in your Evidation app:

Remember, you can let us know at any time if you’re experiencing flu symptoms by selecting “yes” on the symptom and exposure offers above. Identifying early signs of flu across the country can help us slow the spread of illness. 

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Protect yourself and others 

We’re halfway there! We can all work together to stay safe and healthy for the rest of the flu season, but it’s important to know our most effective tools for prevention.  Recently, we quizzed our members on their Flu IQ, and for the most part, people know their stuff! 

However, we think it’s important to underscore the best thing you can do to protect yourself from the flu: Vaccinate!

CDC recommends the flu vaccine as the first and most important step in protecting against the flu. And of course, preventive actions like covering your cough and washing your hands often can help stop the spread of germs.

While it’s advised to get a flu shot earlier in the season, it’s still not too late! Join the 162 million people getting this year’s quadrivalent flu vaccine, which protects against the four most common flu viruses. And an added bonus - you can get it at the same time as a COVID-19 vaccine or booster.

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What is health research?

Research begins with a question and is the process of answering those questions. In health research specifically, studies are created to answer questions that increase our understanding of people’s health and ways to improve health. For example, we might want to learn more about people's health-related experiences, dig deeper into why people have specific health habits, or determine whether a new medication or medical product can treat a health condition.  

What a study looks like depends on the types of question researchers want to answer. Different types of research can be used to answer different questions. 

Who manages health research studies? 

Many people are involved in making a research study happen because there is a lot that goes into  a successful study. For example, someone needs to decide:

• Who should be in the study
• How those people can learn about, sign up for, and get paid for the study
• What the study steps should look like
• What data should be collected
• How the data should be analyzed

Study teams can range from a small group of people working together to much larger groups where everyone has a very specific job. In general, the people in charge of leading health research studies are the study sponsor and a principal investigator (PI). They are supported by a variety of research staff.  

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When and Where do health research studies happen?

Health research takes place all year round, at many different places. The right place for a study often depends on the questions it wants to answer.  For example, some studies take place in person, at locations called “research sites”. Research sites can be a part of a hospital, private medical practice, or a university. Study volunteers go to research sites when the study involves in-person activities, like face-to-face interviews, lab tests or other clinical procedures, or the use of devices people do not have at home. 

Other studies are conducted completely virtually, often via smartphones or computers. These studies are sometimes called “decentralized” studies because participants do not have to go to a central study location or medical office and can participate remotely, from where they are. 

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What do health research studies look like?

Different types of research can be used to answer different questions. The diagram below explains some of the different kinds of research. We'll talk more about the specific types of studies we do at Evidation (formerly Achievement) Studies in a future Research 101 post.

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Who participates in health research studies?

The most important part of health research is the study participants. Study participants are volunteers who consent (in other words, give their permission) to be in a study. They provide data through surveys, labs, assessments, and other study activities, which help researchers answer their research questions. 

Study participants are crucial to the success of a study and the future of healthcare and medicine. Without study volunteers, there is no study. And with no studies, there are no improvements to healthcare.

Where can I learn more about how to participate?

The Evidation app is great for managing your health and for offering you opportunities to participate in research.

Clinicaltrials.gov is a registry of clinical trials that provides the public with information on past and current trials.

Thanks for taking the time to learn more about health research and how it can make a difference for you and the world around you. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us at study@evidation.com.

Doctors and scientists use a lot of language that can be hard for the average person to understand. This "jargon" helps them communicate effectively with one another, but it can make learning about research difficult.

When we talk about health research, we sometimes need to use these terms to be as specific and transparent as possible.

So, to help, we've put together this list of common research terms and their definitions.

Common Health Research Terms

You can refer back to this page anytime you need to, and we'll update it to reflect new topics we post about.

Aggregate data

Data from a group of individuals that is combined into a summary format, for example, in tables or graphs. When data is aggregated (combined), individuals cannot be identified by their data. 

Clinical Research

Clinical research is a type of health science which aims to produce knowledge that is valuable for understanding human disease, preventing and treating illness, and promoting health.  

Coded study data

Data from a study which does not contain personally identifiable information (PII), for example, name, address, date of birth, social security number, etc. The PII is replaced by a code (usually a string of random letters and numbers) so no one can know who the participant is just from looking at the dataset. The participant’s corresponding personal information is kept separate to protect their identity as much as possible.

Cohort

A group of individuals who share a common characteristic or group of characteristics who are observed in a study. For example, the feature they may have in common could be a health diagnosis or a treatment assignment.

Sometimes, this term can also be used to refer to a group that a study participant is assigned to, such as a “study branch”, "study group", or “study arm”. 

Examples:

• In a study on diabetes, researchers may observe a set of traits patients diagnosed with diabetes who are on insulin (cohort 1) and who are not on insulin (cohort 2)
• In a study on how social media affects people of different ages, researchers might  observe symptoms in people age 10-15 (cohort 1), 16-20 (cohort 2), and 21-25 (cohort 3)
  

Confidentiality

Confidentiality refers to how an individual’s personal data is protected by people or groups granted permission to process it. It refers to how a person’s information is treated once it has been shared. Maintaining confidentiality is an important way to protect privacy and build trust.

Control group

The control group in a randomized controlled trial does not receive an “experimental treatment”, or the treatment that is being tested. Instead, they may receive no treatment, or another treatment that gets compared to the treatment being tested. The purpose of the control group is to compare research results between the group that receives the treatment and the group that doesn’t. 

For example, in a study that wants to learn whether a pain medication is helpful, one group would get the pain medication and the other group wouldn’t. The group that does not receive the pain medication is known as the control group. The data from these two groups could then be compared to learn more about whether the pain medication (the treatment or drug) is helpful.

De-identification

A process used to remove any personally identifying information (or PII) from data collected during a study. This is used to protect the identity of participants in a research study.

De-identified data

Data that is not linked to any personally identifying information (or PII), which means that it cannot be linked back to a specific person. 

Decentralized trial

A research trial that is not conducted at a physical location or “site” (also referred to sometimes as a “siteless” trial). Instead of having participants come to a location to complete study activities, they are able to participate from where they are (i.e. online, using home care, telemedicine visits, etc.)

Eligibility criteria

Criteria for who can or cannot participate in a research study, as defined by the researchers. These criteria must be met by all participants. Eligibility criteria are put in place to make sure that the researchers are able to get meaningful data to answer the study’s research questions, and/or protect people who may experience negative effects from a study. Eligibility criteria are different for any study.

For example, a study researching a birth control pill in females may exclude males. That same study may exclude females with heart conditions for their safety, if the birth control being tested is known to cause heart problems.

Eligibility screening

Questions or activities used to determine (or “screen”) if a person is eligible to participate in a study. This often occurs in the form of a survey, but could include other activities such as interviews or medical assessments.

Enrollment

The process of entering into a research study or trial. This can include a variety of steps, including agreeing to participate in a study by signing the informed consent form.

Exclusion criteria

Any criteria that would make a person ineligible to participate in a study. Exclusion criteria are created by the researchers to make sure the study results are meaningful and to protect potential participants from study activities that could be harmful to them. 

For example, a study may exclude participants who take a blood pressure medication, if there is reason to believe that people taking that type of medication could be harmed by the study. 

Good Clinical Practice

Good Clinical Practice (GCP) is an international guide for how to conduct ethical and good quality research. GCP applies to every aspect of a study, from start to finish. The purpose of this guide is to protect the rights and safety of study participants, as well as ensure the integrity and quality of study data.

Health research

Research that aims to learn about human health. This type of research can help us learn about, prevent, and treat health conditions. Also sometimes referred to as clinical research. 

HIPAA

HIPAA stands for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. It is a U.S. federal law that created guidelines to protect patients' PHI (personal health information). For more details on how HIPAA applies to research, click here. 

Inclusion criteria

Criteria that a person must meet to be eligible to participate in a study. 

For example, a study that is researching a blood pressure medication may require individuals to have high blood pressure. 

Informed consent

A process by which a person voluntarily confirms that they are willing to participate in a particular study. During this process, the person is given detailed information about the study so that they can make an informed decision about whether they want to participate. If a person decides to participate in a study, their consent is documented on an Informed Consent Form.

Informed Consent Form (ICF)

A form used to explain and document a person’s willingness to participate in a specific study. The form provides any important information a person needs to be able to decide whether participating in the study is right for them. For example, the form will include information on the purpose of the study, who is conducting the study, and any risks.

Interventional Research

Studies which are designed to understand the effects of treatment or preventive measures on a condition. This can also be described as “experimental research.” 

For example, a researcher may want to understand if an anxiety medication can also be used to treat chronic pain. In such a study, the researcher may give the anxiety medication to individuals with chronic pain, to see if the medication affects them. 

Institutional Review Board (IRB)

A group which independently reviews any research involving people. This group is made up of at least five members with different scientific and non-scientific backgrounds (for example, researchers, doctors, nurses, scientists, psychologists, patients, etc.)  The role of the IRB is to ensure that participants' rights and welfare are protected and that studies are carried out in an ethical manner.

Observational Research

Studies which are designed to observe what happens to a group of participants. Unlike interventional research, observational research does not try to introduce a treatment or product, but instead observes how participants behave naturally.

For example, a researcher may want to observe how depression affects the average number of steps a person walks per day. 

Participant

A person who enrolls (or takes part) in a research study after signing an informed consent form and completing any other study-required enrollment activities.

Person-Generated Health Data

Health-related data that is created, recorded, or gathered by individuals (or by family members or caregivers). Sources of PGHD include wearable devices or phones, electronic surveys, apps, or any other interactions with technology that generate personal data about health. 

Personally identifiable information (PII)

Personally identifiable information (PII) is any form of sensitive data that can be used to identify a person (for example, name or social security number). A study that collects PII is required to protect that data.

Privacy

Privacy refers to a person’s right to limit access or processing of their personal information by other people or groups. This can include controlling what, how much, and when personal information is shared with others

Principal Investigator

The person(s) who leads and takes overall responsibility for a research study. Typically, this is a medical doctor or someone with a doctorate degree in a health field. The Principal Investigator (PI) makes sure that the research follows good scientific and ethical practices and that it can answer the research questions being asked (often, being asked by a study sponsor). The PI also oversees the research support staff.

Protected Health Information (PHI)

Protected Health Information (PHI) refers to personal health-related information that is shared between individuals or organizations who provide treatment, payment, and operations in healthcare. For example, this can include Medical Record Numbers, hospital bills, lab reports, etc. 

It’s important to note that PHI is different from PII. PII is an umbrella term for any information that can be traced to an individual’s identity, while PHI refers specifically to identifiable health information possessed by HIPAA covered entities. 

Protected group

Groups of people who are provided additional protections in health research based on federal regulations. In some cases, individuals in these groups may not be able to legally consent to participating in research by themselves and may require consent to be given by a caregiver or legally authorized representative. 

Examples of protected groups include children, pregnant women, and prisoners. 

Randomized Controlled Trial (RCT)

A study in which researchers randomly assign participants to different groups (also called arms or cohorts). The goal is to minimize bias and then compare the study results between the groups.

For example, a study may randomly assign participants to take either a new medication or a sugar tablet every day. The researchers will then use the data from participants to learn if the medication made a difference for the group that received it.

Real-world evidence

Clinical evidence that is generated from real-world data about the use, risks, and/or benefits of a medication, product, or treatment. 

Real-world data

Data about the use, risks, and/or benefits of a medication, product, or treatment that come from a variety of sources. For example, real-world data can come from clinical sources like electronic health records, claims and billing activities, product and disease registries. Or it can come from everyday sources like health apps and fitness trackers. 

Research

The process of using scientific methods to collect, analyze, and interpret data collected from studies to contribute to knowledge about a topic. 

Research site

A location where research is conducted. This can include hospitals, universities, private medical practices, research institutes, and more. 

Sponsor

A sponsor may be an individual or pharmaceutical company, governmental agency, academic institution, private organization, or other group that initiates, oversees, and/or is financially responsible for the research. 

For example, a pharmaceutical company may initiate research to learn if the drug they make works, and pay another independent organization to actually conduct the study. 

Study

Where research methods are used to collect, analyze, and interpret data collected from participants to contribute to knowledge about a topic. 

Study data

Information collected during a research study. It can include demographic information (race, age, education level), health information, descriptions of the participant’s progress, and other relevant information.

Withdrawal

The process of exiting a research study or trial. All research studies are voluntary, which means that participants are free to stop participating at any time for any reason.

The power of community building and data sharing.

This month, we launched Flu Monitoring on Evidation, and in that short time, more than 100,000 people have enrolled in the program!

In recent years, we’ve seen that tremendous good can come from sharing activity and symptoms data–and from a collective commitment to health. The impact these two actions have made in reducing the spread of illness in communities is profound, and your continued engagement with Flu Monitoring on Evidation follows that same path.

Enrollment across the US

In the spirit of health, we’ve seen people join together to form our Flu Monitoring on Evidation community from all 50 states. Ranging from young adults to those in their 80s!

With an average age of 37 years old, the Evidation Members participating in this program represent a diverse mix of geographies and ages throughout the US.

These maps show details of the program enrollment by state and by zip code:

Enrollment by state:

Enrollment by zip code:

Engagement in our health this flu season

As flu season kicks into high gear, it’s more important to take part in our health, but many people won’t receive treatment for their flu symptoms. This can lead to increased spread in our families, social circles, and communities.

That’s where Flu Monitoring on Evidation comes in: Engaging with us regularly can help match the right people with the right services at the right time.

Remember, you can let us know at any time if you’re experiencing flu symptoms by clicking on this offer card. Being mindful of your symptoms and sharing that information is key to slowing the spread.

Flu cases among Evidation Members

Even though rates of influenza-like illness moving up from “minimal” toward “low,” may not seem severe, it’s an important trend to watch.

Weekly CDC Influenza-like Illness Activity Map for Week Ending November 13, 2021

Identifying early signs of flu across the country can help us slow the spread of illness.

In its first month alone, Flu Monitoring on Evidation has identified nearly 1600 cases of flu-like symptoms from changes in activity data. This information can help people know when to access treatment and protect their loved ones.

It’s no surprise that most of the flu symptoms have been reported in states where program enrollments are highest — California and Texas. But when we look at the number of reports as a percentage of the total enrolled, a different pattern emerges.

We’re keeping an eye on the data we collect –both from the program and from the CDC–so make sure to look out for more personalized information about how the flu is circulating in your area.

Percentage of flu symptoms reported, of those enrolled:

Total flu symptoms reported, of those enrolled:

Stay healthy and engaged

According to the CDC, this season’s flu vaccine will be quadrivalent–which means it’s designed to protect against the four most common flu viruses. That way it can provide the broadest protection. And while most Flu Monitoring participants report having their COVID vaccine, fewer than half reported getting their flu vaccine.

But it’s not too late! Join the 162 million people getting the flu vaccine. And in case you were wondering, flu vaccines and COVID-19 vaccines can be given at the same time.

Sticking with Flu Monitoring is easy, and only takes a few seconds each day. All you have to do is open your Evidation app regularly, and be sure to respond to any notifications we send you. Alert us when you’re feeling under the weather, and we’ll ask you a few follow up questions. And as always — sync your wearable device every day if you have one.

Haven’t joined us yet? You can still enroll! Visit your Evidation dashboard and look for this offer card.

Thanks for joining us on the journey toward healthier living this flu season.

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COVID-19 continues to occupy our minds and affect our everyday lives. As vaccinations rolled out, questions emerged around what new directions the virus would take. For our third survey on COVID-19 Vaccination Perceptions and Behaviors (“Survey 3”), which was open between April and June 2021, we wanted to understand how people’s feelings and behaviors evolved as vaccination efforts continued in our communities.

We learned what percentage of members had gotten at least one vaccine, when they decided to get vaccinated, and what activities they felt comfortable resuming. The data also show interesting shifts in behaviors and mindsets compared to our previous surveys, and we’re excited to dive into some of the details with you below!

For an overview of the study objectives, methods, and results from the first perceptions and behaviors survey, please see our original blog post here. You can find the preliminary results from our second perceptions and behaviors survey here.

Background

74,740 people (“participants”) completed Survey 3. The average age of participants was 39.1, which is slightly higher than the previous surveys. Most participants identified as female (80.7%) and identified as white (79.6%).

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Vaccination Perceptions and Behaviors

The main focus for this survey was to examine people’s beliefs and preferences around COVID-19 vaccination now that access to the vaccine is more widespread.

72.6% of Survey 3 participants reported having received at least one COVID-19 vaccine.

This percentage represents a substantial increase compared to our last survey, in which only 11.4% of participants had received a vaccine. We expected to see an increase since more people were eligible for vaccination during Survey 3 than in Survey 2 (which launched in January 2021), but were surprised by the magnitude: for comparison, only about 63% of the US adult population had received at least one vaccine when the survey closed (see here for the CDC’s summary of COVID and US vaccination in early June).

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A majority of vaccinated participants received the Pfizer vaccine (53.8%), followed by Moderna (39.2%) and Johnson & Johnson (6.7%).

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Most vaccinated participants were eager to get the vaccine as soon as they became eligible. (63.3%).

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For many people, increasing access to COVID-19 vaccination was accompanied by a return to certain activities that had been put on hold. Between April and June, 47% of vaccinated participants started attending indoor events with others who are vaccinated, and 43.9% began eating in restaurants again. Meanwhile, 15.9% of participants reported that they had not yet resumed any activities.

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Changing Trends Over Time

We were happy to see a number of positive trends when we looked at evolving perceptions throughout the three surveys we’ve completed in the series so far. For example, Survey 3 participants tended to report lower hesitancy about COVID-19 vaccines compared to previous surveys.

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This decrease in hesitancy may be due to an increase in information: Survey 3 participants reported feeling even more informed about the vaccines than previous survey participants. 68.9% of people reported feeling “informed” or “very informed”, compared with 53.3% in Survey 2 and 27.1% in Survey 1.

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Participants also reported being increasingly likely to get their children vaccinated when they could. 37.2% of participants reported that they would vaccinate their children when they were able to, compared to 26.9% in Survey 2 and 19.2% in Survey 1.

We look forward to exploring more about decisions to vaccinate children in our next Perceptions and Behaviors survey.

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Next Steps

To understand how people’s perceptions and behaviors related to COVID-19 vaccination have continued to evolve as variants spread and vaccines became available to children, we will soon send an additional survey on Evidation Members’ perceptions and behaviors. Stay tuned for more!

If you’d like to get vaccinated, see this CDC page with resources to find appointments near you.

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The release of COVID-19 vaccinations has been a symbol of hope to many people — -and a source of hesitancy to some. For our second survey on COVID-19 vaccination perceptions and behaviors (which we will refer to as “survey 2” throughout this blog post), we wanted to understand how people were feeling about the vaccines as people first started getting access to them. We launched the survey in January 2021, and are excited to share some preliminary results with you!

Participants

100,080 people (“participants”) completed survey 2. 54,701 have completed all surveys in the study so far. The mean age of survey 2 participants was 37.4 (standard deviation: 12.2 years). The majority of survey 2 participants identified as female (80.8%) and identified as white (78.0%).

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Vaccination Likelihood and Hesitancy

One of our main focuses for this survey was to examine how COVID-19 vaccination likelihood and hesitancy has evolved over time.

11.4% of participants had already gotten a COVID-19 vaccine when they took the survey, with an additional 0.6% reporting participating in COVID-19 vaccination trials:

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Overall, survey 2 participants reported being more positive about COVID-19 vaccination than they had been previously. 30% of participants reported feeling more likely to get a COVID-19 vaccine than they had been a month ago:

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People reported a range of reasons for their likelihood of vaccination increasing, with some common responses including:

• Feeling more informed about COVID vaccination overall (for example, “learned more information about it”, “just thinking and researching”)
• Feeling more confident about COVID vaccination safety as more data and research were released (for example, “more data on potential side effects”, “studies are getting better and more people are receiving it.”)
• Feeling more confident about COVID vaccination safety as they saw their friends, family, and community starting to get vaccinated (for example, “seeing those I respect get it”, “watching people I know get it with little adverse side effects”)

We saw a similar trend looking at the differences between reported vaccination likelihood in the first and second surveys; mean reported likelihood was 4.93 in survey 1 (median=5), and 6.53 in survey 2 (median=8.0):

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Although the majority of participants (51.5%) still report being more hesitant about COVID-19 vaccines than other vaccines, a higher percentage of survey 2 participants reported being equally or less hesitant than survey 1 participants:

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Vaccination Informedness

As mentioned above, one common reason people gave for their increase in vaccination likelihood was feeling more informed about the vaccines. Our data reflect this increase in self-reported informedness; in survey 1, only 27.1% of participants reported feeling “informed” or “very informed”, but 53.3% did so in survey 2:

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The most common pieces of information unvaccinated participants reported needing to know before deciding to get the COVID-19 vaccine were all potential side effects (62.7%) and possible long-term impacts of vaccination (58.9%).

We look forward to further investigating these current perceptions and behaviors and see how they change as more people become eligible for vaccination!

Next Steps

To understand how people’s perceptions and behaviors related to COVID-19 vaccination continue to evolve as vaccines become available more broadly, we will send additional surveys over the following months asking for Evidation Members’ perceptions and behaviors. The exact dates of these future surveys will depend on developments in the pandemic and COVID-19 vaccination, so stay tuned for more!

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If you’d like to get vaccinated, see this CDC page with resources to find appointments near you.

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Our Research, Analytics, and Learning team is exploring and analyzing data from our Evidation platform, where members contribute to research and help us uncover insights that could improve their health and the health of others.

During this year’s presidential election there was high voter turnout which included record-breaking numbers of mail-in ballots due to COVID-19. As we now know, this high volume of ballots required multiple days to count, so no final winner could be projected on Election Day. We decided to look at Evidation Members activity data to see what changes the election may have caused for our members.

We used Fitbit data contributed by Evidation Members, to explore sleep characteristics and schedules for the month leading up to Election Day in 2020. We looked specifically at the time that each member went to bed in their local timezone. Equivalent time periods in 2017–2019 were used for comparison. These periods were aligned across years based on week rather than calendar date, so that differences in weekend and weekday sleep cycles would line up. This also syncs the end of daylight saving time, which happened on November 1, 2020, the Sunday two days before Election Day, and temporarily shifts our sleep cycles earlier. Positioning the data in this way allows for appropriate comparisons of data across years.

So, did anything about our sleep change? This plot shows the average time Evidation Members started sleeping on the weeks leading up to and immediately after daylight saving time from 2017–2020:

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There is a clear weekly pattern: we go to bed later on Friday and Saturday nights, when we have a weekend day ahead of us. On daylight savings weekend we started sleeping slightly earlier as we adjusted to the end of daylight saving time, a trend which continues through the following week as we slowly adjust to going to bed later again. However, on Election Day 2020 this pattern was disrupted; bedtimes spiked up over 20 minutes from Sunday and Monday night.

You may also notice the interesting pattern of later bedtimes in 2017, leading up to daylight saving time. This lines up with Halloween night and games 6 and 7 of the 2017 World Series. We’ve examined the impact of the 2017 World Series on sleep in the past.

As we looked closer at our sleep data, we were curious to see if members on the East Coast stayed up later in their time zone than those on the West Coast while they waited for results, so we examined average bedtimes in each time zone. On election night, members on the East Coast stayed up the latest (11:51 PM), compared to members in the Central (11:39 PM), Mountain (11:39 PM), and Pacific (11:43 PM) time zones. Compared to the previous night, members in Eastern Standard Time stayed up 22 minutes later, Central Standard Time 20 minutes later, and Mountain Standard Time 23 minutes later, while members in Pacific Standard Time stayed up only 14 minutes later.

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Regardless of where we live, sleep is an important part of our health. Fortunately, later bedtimes due to the election were confined to Tuesday night. Bedtimes returned to normal after Election Day, as it became clear that election results would take at least several more days to be projected.

Did you stay up late on Election Day? If you have tips to reduce stress or improve sleep, we’d love to hear them.

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