Reducing administrative burdens to increase the take-up of public services: the case of vaccination intentions

The literature on administrative burdens has directed attention to why citizens struggle to engage with state services that would benefit them. In a paired conjoint experiment with Italian adults, COVID-19 vaccination intention is positively impacted by reducing administrative burdens, after controlling for vaccine's efficacy and side effects: automatic enrolment of citizens through pre-scheduled appointments, offering a convenient location, less time required to get vaccinated and social norms whereby the majority is in favour of getting vaccinated. Reductions in burdens are especially relevant for adults over the age of 64 and those with neutral or high vaccination intention.