# Covid-19 Vaccination Rates An experimental study examining the validity of Covid-19 vaccination rates in Germany ## Project "Sensitive Questions and Social Desirability - Theory and Methods" funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) ## Team #### Leads Prof. Dr. [Jochen Mayerl][1], Technische Universität Chemnitz Dr. [Felix Wolter][2], Universität Konstanz #### Assistants [Henrik Andersen][3], M.A., Technische Universität Chemnitz [Justus Junkermann][4], M.A., Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg Theresa Wieland, M.A., Universität Konstanz --- ## Description Several studies have shown that official Covid-19 vaccination rates reported by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) are much lower than those calculated using surveys of the general population. Public debate has centered on whether the official statistics are failing to capture the actual vaccination rate. Our experimental study shows that social desirability in survey studies leads to some unvaccinated individuals claiming to be vaccinated. Conventional survey studies thus overestimate vaccination rates. [1]: https://www.tu-chemnitz.de/hsw/soziologie/Institut/Profile/mjoc/index.php [2]: https://www.soziologie.uni-konstanz.de/diehl/team/mitarbeiterinnen/dr-felix-wolter/ [3]: https://www.tu-chemnitz.de/hsw/soziologie/Institut/Profile/andeh/index.php [4]: https://www.ims.uni-halle.de/team/justus_junkermann/