Pandemic lifeworlds: A segmentation analysis of public responsiveness to official communication about Covid-19 in England

Pandemics such as Covid-19 pose tremendous public health communication challenges in promoting protective behaviours, vaccination, and educating the public about risks. Segmenting audiences based on attitudes and behaviours is a means to increase the precision and potential effectiveness of such communication. The present study reports on such an audience segmentation effort for the population of England, sponsored by the United Kingdom Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and involving a collaboration of market research and academic experts. A cross-sectional online survey was conducted between 4 and 24 January 2022 with 5525 respondents (5178 used in our analyses) in England using market research opt-in panel. An additional 105 telephone interviews were conducted to sample persons without online or smartphone access. Respondents were quota sampled to be demographically representative. The primary analytic technique was k means cluster analysis, supplemented with other techniques including multi-dimensional scaling and use of respondent - as well as sample-standardized data when necessary to address differences in response set for some groups of respondents. Identified segments were profiled against demographic, behavioural self-report, attitudinal, and communication channel variables, with differences by segment tested for statistical significance. Seven segments were identified, including distinctly different groups of persons who tended toward a high level of compliance and several that were relatively low in compliance. The segments were characterized by distinctive patterns of demographics, attitudes, behaviours, trust in information sources, and communication channels preferred. Segments were further validated by comparing the segmentation variable versus a set of demographic variables as predictors of reported protective behaviours in the past two weeks and of vaccine refusal; the demographics together had about one-quarter the effect size of the single seven-level segment variable. With respect to managerial implications, different communication strategies for each segment are suggested for each segment, illustrating advantages of rich segmentation descriptions for understanding public health communication audiences. Strengths and weaknesses of the methods used are discussed, to help guide future efforts.

Testing the effectiveness of alcohol health warning label formats: An online experimental study with Australian adult drinkers

Health warning labels (HWLs) on alcohol containers may help reduce population-level alcohol consumption. However, few studies have examined the most effective formats for alcohol HWLs. This study tested the effects of three different types of alcohol HWLs. In an online experiment, N = 1,755 Australian adult drinkers were randomly assigned to one of five conditions: (a) No HWL control; (b) DrinkWise control (industry-developed labels currently on some containers); (c) Text-Only HWLs; (d) Text + Pictogram HWLs; or (e) Text + Photograph HWLs. In the three intervention conditions, participants were exposed to eight HWLs, each depicting a different long-term harm. Exposure occurred during an initial session, and repeatedly over the subsequent eight days. Differences between conditions were assessed immediately following initial exposure and at nine-day follow-up. Compared to participants in the No HWL control, participants exposed to Text + Pictogram HWLs were more likely to have intentions to avoid drinking alcohol completely in the next month (post-exposure) and intentions to drink less alcohol in the next week (follow-up), and participants in all three intervention conditions reported stronger negative emotional arousal (follow-up) and weaker positive emotional arousal (follow-up). Compared to participants in the DrinkWise control, those exposed to Text + Pictogram HWLs had stronger intentions to drink less alcohol in the next week and intentions to avoid drinking alcohol completely in the next month (follow-up), participants in the Text + Photograph condition reported significantly weaker positive emotional arousal, and all three intervention conditions resulted in stronger negative emotional arousal. There would likely be benefits to public health if any of the three types of intervention HWLs were implemented. However, there is some evidence that Text + Pictogram HWLs should be recommended over Text-Only or Text + Photograph HWLs, given they were the only HWLs to increase intentions to drink less.

Correlates of U.S. Young adults’ awareness of alcohol use as a behavioral risk factor for cancer

Although alcohol increases the risk of cancer, awareness of alcohol-related cancer risks is low. Alcohol use is prevalent among young adults, and understanding factors associated with awareness and perceptions of alcohol-related cancer risks in this group is critical for cancer prevention efforts. We examined the demographic, tobacco, and alcohol related correlates of young adults’ awareness and perceptions of alcohol as a behavioral risk factor for cancer. We completed a secondary analysis of data collected in February 2020 in the U.S. from 1,328 young adults (ages 18–30) who completed a cross-sectional online survey. Participants reported (1) awareness of alcohol as a risk factor for cancer and (2) perceived risks of serious disease such as cancer. We analyzed demographic characteristics, alcohol use, and tobacco use associated with these outcome variables using multivariable regression. Overall, 18.5% of participants believed that alcohol does not increase cancer risk. Perceived cancer risk associated with alcohol use was moderate (M 3.2, SD 1.6, 1–7 scale). In multivariable analysis, awareness of risk was significantly higher among those with higher socioeconomic status. Perceived risk was significantly greater among those with higher socioeconomic status, higher alcohol consumption, and a history of tobacco use. These findings indicate research is warranted to better understand awareness of alcohol as a behavioral risk factor for cancer and associated beliefs in subgroups of young adults to help guide the development of interventions to raise awareness of the risks of cancer associated with alcohol use.

Prospective associations between attitudes toward alcohol advertisements and alcohol use behaviors among adolescent boys

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Exposure to alcohol advertisements is associated with drinking among adolescents.

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Little is known about attitudes toward advertisements and drinking.

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Positive attitudes toward advertisements affect alcohol use prospectively.

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Media literacy programs should address attitudes toward alcohol advertisements.

Objectives

Earlier initiation of alcohol use and problematic drinking among adolescents are linked with adverse health outcomes. Exposure to alcohol advertisements is associated with drinking among adolescents, but the association between the attitudes toward alcohol advertisements and drinking behaviors is understudied. We evaluated the association between attitudes towards alcohol advertisements and initiation of alcohol use among adolescent boys.

Methods

Adolescent boys from urban and Appalachian Ohio enrolled in a prospective study and reported whether they had ever consumed alcohol or been drunk at baseline (N = 1220; ages 11–16 years) and at the 24-month follow up (N = 891). Attitudes toward alcohol advertisements were measured at baseline following a brief advertisement viewing activity. Adjusted logistic regression models were used to estimate associations between attitudes toward advertisements and initiating alcohol use or drunkenness at the 24-month follow-up.

Results

Adolescent boys reporting any positive attitudes toward alcohol advertisements had higher odds of initiating alcohol use (aOR = 2.00, 95% CI [1.16, 3.44]), and attitudes were marginally associated with incident drunkenness (aOR = 2.20, 95% CI [0.94, 5.12]). Increasing age, higher household income, ever use of tobacco, and frequency of visiting alcohol retailers were also associated with greater odds of incident alcohol use and/or drunkenness.

Conclusions

Attitudes toward alcohol advertisements at baseline were associated with alcohol drinking behaviors 24-months later among adolescent boys. Results highlight the importance of media literacy interventions targeted to adolescents.

Associations between Cognitive and Affective Responses to Tobacco Advertisements and Tobacco Use Incidence: A Four-Year Prospective Study among Adolescent Boys

Exposure to tobacco advertisements is associated with initiation of tobacco use among youth. The mechanisms underlying this association are less clear. We estimated longitudinal associations between youths' cognitive and affective responses to advertisements for cigarettes, e-cigarettes, and smokeless tobacco (SLT) and initiation of these products. N = 1220 Ohio-residing boys of ages 11-16 were recruited into a cohort in 2015 and 2016. Participants completed surveys every six months for four years. Surveys assessed cognitive and affective responses to tobacco advertisements (which included health warnings) and tobacco use after an advertisement viewing activity. We used mixed-effects Poisson regression models with robust standard errors to estimate risk of initiating use of each tobacco product according to participants' cognitive (i.e., memorability of health risks) and affective (i.e., likability of advertisement) responses to advertisements for that product. No associations between affective responses to advertisements and tobacco use outcomes were detected in adjusted models. However, finding health risks memorable was associated with reduced risk of ever smoking initiation (aRR = 0.57; 95% CI: 0.34, 0.95) and a reduced risk of ever SLT initiation that approached statistical significance (aRR = 0.61; 95% CI: 0.36, 1.05). Measures to increase saliency of health risks on cigarette and SLT advertisements might reduce use among youth.

Eudaimonic Testimonial Vs. Didactic Presentation Impact on Willingness to Engage in Conversations about End-of-Life Care: The Moderating Role of Modeling

Using the mediated wisdom of experience (MWOE) theoretical framework, this study examines how eudaimonic testimonials versus comparable didactic presentations, and the presence or absence of modeling target behavior, influence death acceptance and intentions to converse about end-of-life care preferences. Effects for testimonials on attitudes and behaviors proved contingent on modeling. When testimonials incorporated modeled behavior, individuals were more likely to intend to carry out conversations about end-of-life conversations. However, when the testimonials did not provide modeled examples of conversations about death, individuals were more likely to experience anxiety and less likely to intend to engage in such conversations. Mediation analyses found that testimonials indirectly increased attitudes and intentions to have end-of-life conversations through emotional range and death acceptance. Mediation analyses also indicated modeling such conversations increased attitudes and intentions toward having end-of-life conversations via identification and self-efficacy.

Understanding the effectiveness of advertisements about the long-term harms of alcohol and low-risk drinking guidelines: A mediation analysis

RATIONALE

Many people overestimate the amount of alcohol that increases their risk of harm and so may not perceive any need to change their drinking behaviour. Several countries have developed low-risk drinking guidelines, yet awareness of these guidelines remains low. Furthermore, mass media campaigns about alcohol-related harms may have limited impact if people do not perceive their current consumption as potentially harmful. Integrating drinking guidelines into media campaigns about alcohol's harms can concurrently provide drinkers with information about low-risk drinking levels and compelling reasons to comply.

OBJECTIVE

Our aim was to build understanding of the effectiveness of messages about the long-term harms of drinking and low-risk drinking guidelines, by testing the mediating effects of estimates of harmful drinking levels and attitudes towards drinking alcohol on subsequent intentions and behaviours.

METHOD

In an online experiment conducted in 2016, n = 1156 Australian adult monthly drinkers were randomly assigned to view advertisements for non-alcohol products (NON-ALC; control), advertisements featuring long-term harms of alcohol (LTH), or LTH advertisements plus a guideline message (LTH + G). Immediately following exposure, we measured estimates of harmful drinking levels and attitudes towards drinking alcohol. One week later, we measured intentions to drink less and behavioural compliance with the guideline.

RESULTS

Compared to NON-ALC advertisements, exposure to LTH + G advertisements increased (i) the proportion of respondents who correctly estimated harmful drinking levels, which in turn, strengthened intentions to drink less (42% of the total effect was mediated), and (ii) negative attitudes, which in turn, also increased intentions to drink less (35% mediated) and behavioural compliance (24% mediated). Compared to NON-ALC, LTH advertisements increased negative attitudes, which in turn strengthened intentions to drink less (53% mediated).

CONCLUSIONS

When paired with effective alcohol harm reduction television advertisements, messages promoting low-risk drinking guidelines can increase drinkers' intentions to reduce their alcohol consumption and compliance with low-risk drinking guidelines.

Increasing Alcohol Control Policy Support: The Mediating Role of Empathy and Emotions

Background: Mass media messages have the potential to reduce alcohol-related harm through increasing support for alcohol-control policies. Objectives: In Study 1, we experimentally examined the incidental effects of alcohol mention in news articles about accidents and crime and found evidence that messages mentioning alcohol as a causal factor in the accident or crime can activate empathic and emotional responses, which in turn increase support for alcohol control policy. In Study 2, anti-drinking and driving public service announcements (PSAs) were edited to either portray consequences of drinking and driving for the driver only or for both the driver and innocent others. Results: The versions of the PSAs that showed consequences to others were more successful at eliciting alcohol-control policy support than the versions showing only consequences to the self. As hypothesized, empathy that was directed toward victims (but not drivers under the influence) and negative emotions were supported as mediators of this relationship. Although negative affect and feelings of empathy for the victims of drunk driving are not pleasant emotions to experience, they appear to play an important role in increasing support for public policies to increase safety without having a negative impact on viewer's evaluations of the PSA. Conclusions: Results from the two studies provide evidence that empathy and emotions can play a mediating role between message characteristics (either intentional or incidental) and alcohol control policy support.

The HEALing (Helping to End Addiction Long-term SM) Communities Study: Protocol for a cluster randomized trial at the community level to reduce opioid overdose deaths through implementation of an integrated set of evidence-based practices

BACKGROUND

Opioid overdose deaths remain high in the U.S. Despite having effective interventions to prevent overdose deaths, there are numerous barriers that impede their adoption. The primary aim of the HEALing Communities Study (HCS) is to determine the impact of an intervention consisting of community-engaged, data-driven selection, and implementation of an integrated set of evidence-based practices (EBPs) on reducing opioid overdose deaths.

METHODS

The HCS is a four year multi-site, parallel-group, cluster randomized wait-list controlled trial. Communities (n = 67) in Kentucky, Massachusetts, New York and Ohio are randomized to active intervention (Wave 1), which starts the intervention in Year 1 or the wait-list control (Wave 2), which starts the intervention in Year 3. The HCS will test a conceptually driven framework to assist communities in selecting and adopting EBPs with three components: 1) a community engagement strategy with local coalitions to guide and implement the intervention; 2) a compendium of EBPs coupled with technical assistance; and 3) a series of communication campaigns to increase awareness and demand for EBPs and reduce stigma. An implementation science framework guides the intervention and allows for examination of the multilevel contexts that promote or impede adoption and expansion of EBPs. The primary outcome, number of opioid overdose deaths, will be compared between Wave 1 and Wave 2 communities during Year 2 of the intervention for Wave 1. Numerous secondary outcomes will be examined.

DISCUSSION

The HCS is the largest community-based implementation study in the field of addiction with an ambitious goal of significantly reducing fatal opioid overdoses.

Health communication campaigns to drive demand for evidence-based practices and reduce stigma in the HEALing communities study

BACKGROUND

The HEALing Communities Study (HCS) is testing whether the Communities that Heal (CTH) intervention can decrease opioid overdose deaths through the implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs) in highly impacted communities. One of the CTH intervention components is a series of communications campaigns to promote the implementation of EBPs, increase demand for naloxone and medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD), and decrease stigma toward people with opioid use disorder and the use of EBPs, especially MOUD. This paper describes the approach to developing and executing these campaigns.

METHODS

The HCS communication campaigns are developed and implemented through a collaboration between communication experts, research site staff, and community coalitions using a three-stage process. The Prepare phase identifies priority groups to receive campaign messages, develops content for those messages, and identifies a "call to action" that asks people to engage in a specific behavior. In the Plan phase, campaign resources are produced, and community coalitions develop plans to distribute campaign materials. During the Implement stage, these distribution plans guide delivery of content to priority groups. Fidelity measures assess how community coalitions follow their distribution plan as well as barriers and facilitators to implementation. An evaluation of the communication campaigns is planned.

CONCLUSIONS

If successful, the Prepare-Plan-Implement process, and the campaign materials, could be adapted and used by other communities to address the opioid crisis. The campaign evaluation will extend the evidence base for how communication campaigns can be developed and implemented through a community-engaged process to effectively address public health crises.

Comparing responses to public health and industry-funded alcohol harm reduction advertisements: an experimental study

OBJECTIVES

Conduct a head-to-head experimental test of responses to alcohol harm reduction advertisements developed by alcohol industry Social Aspects/Public Relations Organisations (SAPROs) versus those developed by public health (PH) agencies. We hypothesised that, on average, SAPRO advertisements would be less effective at generating motivation (H1) and intentions to reduce alcohol consumption (H2) but more effective at generating positive perceptions of people who drink (H3).

DESIGN

Online experiment with random assignment to condition.

PARTICIPANTS

2923 Australian adult weekly drinkers (49% high-risk drinkers) recruited from an opt-in online panel.

INTERVENTIONS

Participants viewed 3 of 83 advertisements developed by PH agencies (n=2174) or 3 of 28 advertisements developed by SAPROs (n=749).

PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES

Participants reported their motivation to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed; behave responsibly and/or not get drunk; and limit their drinking around/never supply to minors, as well as intentions to avoid drinking alcohol completely; reduce the number of drinking occasions; and reduce the amount of alcohol consumed per occasion. Participants also reported their perceptions of people who drink alcohol on six success-related items and four fun-related items.

RESULTS

Compared with drinkers exposed to PH advertisements, those exposed to SAPRO advertisements reported lower motivation to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed (β=-0.091, 95% CI -0.171 to -0.010), and lower odds of intending to avoid alcohol completely (OR=0.77, 0.63 to 0.94) and to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed per occasion (OR=0.82, 0.69 to 0.97). SAPRO advertisements generated more favourable fun-related perceptions of drinkers (β=0.095, 0.013 to 0.177).

CONCLUSIONS

The alcohol harm reduction advertisements produced by alcohol industry SAPROs that were tested in this study were not as effective at generating motivation and intentions to reduce alcohol consumption as those developed by PH organisations. These findings raise questions as to whether SAPROs should play a role in alcohol harm reduction efforts.

Improving health communication with photographic images that increase identification in three minority populations

The homophily principle, that perceived similarities among people produce positive reactions, is a cross-cultural, global phenomenon. This study aimed to test the prediction that photographs that depict models similar to the target population improve health communication by increasing perceived identification in three racial/ethnic populations. Three separate nationally representative stratified samples (n = 1638) of African American, Hispanic and Native American adults were drawn from GfK's Knowledge Panel�. Participants read a message advocating increased physical activity and improved diets and completed measures on behavioral intentions, outcome and self-efficacy expectations and identification. The message contained photographs from a stock photograph service or photographs created for the research project to match the three minority populations, Real Health Photos (RHP). Structural equation modeling confirmed the theoretical hypothesis that RHP which matched the minority population increased behavioral intentions and was mediated by identification (P < 0.05) in all three racial/ethnic minority samples. Messages with only half of the matched RHP images had these same positive indirect effects among African Americans and Hispanics (P < 0.05). The impact of matching visual images in health messages to recipients derived from identification with the characters in images. Homophily and identification are hardwired, evolutionary, biological phenomena that should be capitalized on health educators with minority populations.

Adolescent males' responses to blu's fake warnings

OBJECTIVE

Blu's 'Something Better' advertising campaign ran in popular print magazines in 2017. The campaign included advertisements with fake warnings conveying positive messages, which mimicked the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)'s warning requirements for electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) advertisements that took effect in 2018. We report adolescent males' recall of these fake warnings and how exposure to fake warnings affected recall of other advertisement components, including the actual warning or health risks, brand and product.

METHODS

Ohio males ages 12-19 years (N = 775; 73.8 % white non-Hispanic) were randomly assigned to view an e-cigarette advertisement with or without a fake warning. Afterward, they were asked what they remembered most about the advertisement. Responses were qualitatively coded. Statistical analyses included survey-weighted descriptive statistics and logistic regression.

RESULTS

Of participants who viewed an e-cigarette advertisement with a fake warning, 27.0 % reported the fake warning was what they remembered most, and 18.8 % repeated the fake warning message. Participants viewing advertisements with a fake warning had lower odds of recalling the actual warning or health risks (OR = 0.29; 95% CI: 0.11 to 0.77) or brand (OR = 0.43; 95% CI: 0.22 to 0.85), compared with participants viewing other e-cigarette advertisements.

CONCLUSIONS

Adolescents viewing an advertisement with a fake warning were less likely to recall the advertisement's actual warning or health risks. Although e-cigarette advertisements now carry large FDA-mandated warnings, this tactic could be used for cigarette advertisements that continue to carry small warnings in the USA. Findings underscore the necessity of tobacco advertisement surveillance and study of advertisements' effects on adolescents.

The magnitude and impact of tobacco marketing exposure in adolescents' day-to-day lives: An ecological momentary assessment (EMA) study

PURPOSE

Research indicates that tobacco marketing contributes to higher pro-tobacco attitudes and behaviors among adolescents, but no studies have been able to assess the impact of real-world tobacco marketing exposures in real-time. The purpose of this study was to examine the magnitude and impact of tobacco marketing exposure on adolescents using ecological momentary assessment (EMA). Our primary hypotheses were that (1) youth would most frequently report tobacco marketing at the retail points-of-sale and (2) greater exposures to tobacco marketing would be associated with more favorable tobacco-related attitudes, use, and expectancies.

METHODS

Participants were adolescent males from rural and urban Ohio (N = 176, ages 11-16). For ten days, these adolescents were prompted at two-three random times/day to complete a brief smartphone-based survey about their exposures and responses to tobacco-related advertising.

RESULTS

Adolescents reported exposures to tobacco marketing an average of 1.9 times over the 10-day EMA period, with over 10% seeing a tobacco advertisement 5 or more times. Reports of marketing exposures occurred most frequently at the point-of-sale; exposures were higher among tobacco users and rural adolescents. Consistent with hypotheses, marketing exposure was related to more positive attitudes to the tobacco advertisements, more tobacco use, and higher expectancies to use in the future.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall, these findings signal the magnitude of tobacco marketing exposures and their pernicious impact on youth. Findings underscore the importance of federal, state, and local-level tobacco regulatory policies to protect youth from the marketing that puts them at risk for a lifetime of nicotine addiction and tobacco-related diseases.

Tobacco and Alcohol on Television: A Content Analysis of Male Adolescents' Favorite Shows

INTRODUCTION

Media tobacco and alcohol portrayals encourage adolescent substance use. Preventing adolescent initiation with these substances is critical, as they contribute to leading causes of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Television tobacco and alcohol portrayals have not been examined for more than 7 years. This study analyzed tobacco and alcohol portrayals on adolescents' favorite television shows and evaluated the rate of portrayals by parental rating.

METHODS

Adolescent males (N = 1,220) from Ohio reported 3 favorite television shows and how frequently they watch them. For each of the 20 most-watched shows in the sample, 9 episodes were randomly selected and coded for visual and verbal tobacco and alcohol incidents. Demographics of characters who used or interacted with the substances were recorded. Negative binomial regression modeled rates of tobacco and alcohol incidents per hour by parental rating.

RESULTS

There were 49 tobacco and 756 alcohol portrayals across 180 episodes. Characters using the products were mostly white, male, and adult. The rate of tobacco incidents per hour was 1.2 for shows rated TV-14 (95% CI, 0.4-3.6) and 1.1 for shows rated TV-MA (95% CI, 0.3-4.5). The estimated rate of alcohol incidents per hour was 20.9 for shows rated TV-14 (95% CI, 6.3-69.2) and 7.2 for shows rated TV-MA (95% CI, 1.5-34.1).

CONCLUSIONS

Adolescent males' favorite television shows rated TV-14 expose them to approximately 1 tobacco incident and 21 alcohol incidents per hour on average. Limiting tobacco and alcohol incidents on television could reduce adolescents' risk of substance use.

Randomized Trial Evaluating Targeted Photographic Health Communication Messages in Three Stigmatized Populations: Physically-Disabled, Senior, and Overweight/Obese Individuals

The homophily principle that perceived similarities among people produce positive reactions is a cross-cultural, global phenomenon. The prediction that photographs depicting models similar to the target population improve health communication was tested. Three nationally-representative samples (n = 1,796) of adults who are disabled, seniors, or considered overweight/obese were selected from GfK's Knowledge Panel®. Participants read a message promoting physical activity and improved diets and responded to assessments of behavioral intentions, outcome and self-efficacy expectations, and identification. Photographs from a stock photograph service versus photographs created for the research project to match the three populations, Real Health Photos (RHP), were included in the message. Structural equation modeling confirmed that RHP which matched the population increased behavioral intentions mediated by identification (p < 0.05) in the physically-disabled and overweight/obese samples. Messages with only half of the matched RHP images had these same positive indirect effects (p < 0.05). Matched visual images in health messages improved effectiveness by capitalizing on the homophily and identification processes. Health educators should leverage these hardwired, evolutionary, biological phenomena that extend to health status as well as race and ethnicity. For optimal effects, not all persons shown need to be homophilous to the target audience, reducing logistical difficulties in showing diverse persons of various types.

Attitudes toward Tobacco, Alcohol, and Non-Alcoholic Beverage Advertisement Themes among Adolescent Boys

BACKGROUND

Previous studies have examined what adolescents find appealing in tobacco and alcohol advertisements and how different themes in advertisements are used to manipulate consumer behaviors. Yet, we know little about the relationship between the themes portrayed in advertisements and youth attitudes towards those themes.

OBJECTIVES

This study compared attitudes towards advertisements for different consumer products in a sample of urban and rural adolescent boys in order to examine how key marketing themes impact adolescent attitudes towards those advertisements.

METHODS

Participants were 11- to 16-year-old boys (N = 1220) residing in either urban or rural Ohio Appalachian counties. Each participant viewed five print advertisements (one each for cigarettes, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), smokeless tobacco (SLT), non-alcoholic beverages, and alcohol), presented in a random order, for eight seconds each. All advertisements had appeared in magazines that adolescent males commonly read. Attitudes towards each of the five advertisements were assessed. The advertisements were then coded for the presence of various themes, including social acceptance and masculinity. Analyses were conducted to determine associations between advertisement type and the attitude measure, and between the presence of a theme and the attitude measure.

RESULTS

Overall, participants preferred non-tobacco advertisements to tobacco advertisements, rural participants had less positive attitudes and participants who had peers who used tobacco had more positive attitudes. Social acceptance and entertainment themes increased the appeal of SLT advertisements, and sex appeal increased the appeal of e-cigarette advertisements. Conclusions/Importance: Findings suggest that advertisements that promote the social nature of use in SLT advertisements may be of particular concern for their influence on adolescent boys.

Immediate effects on adult drinkers of exposure to alcohol harm reduction advertisements with and without drinking guideline messages: experimental study

AIMS

To compare the immediate effects on drinkers of television advertisements focusing upon short- versus long-term harms with and without low-risk drinking guidelines.

DESIGN

Between-participants on-line experiment, with random assignment to view: (a) alcohol product advertisements (ALC control); (b) advertisements unrelated to alcohol (NON-ALC control); (c) advertisements featuring short-term harms (STH) of alcohol; (d) advertisements featuring STH plus a STH guideline (STH+G); (e) advertisements featuring long-term harms (LTH); or (f) advertisements featuring LTH plus a LTH guideline (LTH+G).

SETTING

Australia, 2016.

PARTICIPANTS

A total of 3718 drinkers aged 18-64 years (48.5% male).

MEASUREMENTS

Post-exposure likelihood that participants provided a correct estimate of drinking levels associated with short- and long-term harms; post-exposure intentions to avoid alcohol or reduce consumption.

FINDINGS

After exposure to STH+G or LTH+G advertisements, participants were more likely to estimate correctly rather than overestimate drinking levels associated with harm, compared with those exposed to STH (P < 0.001) and LTH advertisements without guidelines, respectively (P = 0.019) and ALC control (STH+G, P < 0.001; LTH+G, P < 0.001) and NON-ALC control conditions (STH+G, P < 0.001; LTH+G, P = 0.011). Drinkers exposed to STH conditions were more likely to intend to reduce next-week alcohol consumption than those exposed to ALC control (both P < 0.001) and NON-ALC control conditions (STH, P = 0.001; STH+G, P < 0.001); a similar pattern was observed for intentions to avoid alcohol. Drinkers exposed to LTH conditions were also more likely than drinkers exposed to ALC or NON-ALC controls to intend to avoid and reduce alcohol in the next week. Additionally, drinkers exposed to LTH+G were more likely to intend to reduce drinking than those exposed to LTH advertisements without guidelines (P = 0.022). Response patterns for low- and high-risk drinkers by condition were similar.

CONCLUSIONS

Alcohol harm television advertisements increase intentions to reduce alcohol consumption among both low- and high-risk drinkers. The addition of low-risk drinking guidelines can enhance these effects for advertisements featuring long-term harms and improve estimates of both short- and long-term harmful drinking levels.

Use of Marijuana Edibles by Adolescents in California

We explored how adolescent marijuana edible users differ in regards to marijuana use and related beliefs from marijuana users who do not use edibles. We analyzed California Healthy Kids Survey data collected in one Northern California school district with a racially and ethnically diverse student population. Survey respondents were youth in grades 9-12. Overall, 33% of respondents reported having used marijuana in their lifetime, and 50% of lifetime marijuana users reported using marijuana in the past 30 days. Seventy-two percent of lifetime marijuana users and 82% of past month marijuana users reported having used edibles in their lifetime. Comparing marijuana users who have never used edibles to those users who have, we found that edible users reported using marijuana more frequently in their lifetime. Edible users were also more likely to have used marijuana in the past 30 days, more frequently in the past 30 days, more likely on school property and more frequently on school property. Edible users and non-users differed in their perceptions of risk; edible users were less likely to agree that edible use is very risky. Edible users also reported a younger age of first marijuana use and more attempts to stop using marijuana than non-edible users. Multi-level regression analyses indicate that prevalence of edible use among marijuana users was related to perceived risk of edible use. Perceived risk of edible use among marijuana users was higher among marijuana users who do not use edibles, females, and those youth who perceive school rules to be clear. The findings indicate that prevalence of edible use is high among marijuana users, especially frequent users.

Rumor Acceptance during Public Health Crises: Testing the Emotional Congruence Hypothesis

Rumors pose a significant challenge to officials combatting a public health crisis. The flow of unsubstantiated and often inaccurate information can dilute the effects of more accurate messaging. Understanding why rumors thrive in this context is a crucial first step to constraining them. We propose a novel mechanism for explaining rumor acceptance during a health crisis, arguing that the congruence between one's emotional state and the emotion induced by a rumor leads people to believe the rumor. Data collected using a novel experimental design provide preliminary evidence for our emotional congruence hypothesis. Participants who felt angry were more likely to accept anger-inducing rumors than those who were not angry. We discuss the implications of this insight for public health officials combatting rumors during a health crisis.

Using Health Conditions for Laughs and Health Policy Support: The Case of Food Allergies

Health conditions are sometimes included in entertainment media comedies as a context for and as a source of humor. Food allergies are a typical case in point: They are potentially life-threatening yet may be used in humorous contexts. We conducted a content analysis of food allergies in entertainment media and tested the effects of humorous portrayals from an exemplar entertainment program. The content analysis confirmed that when food allergies were portrayed in television and the movies, it was most frequently in a humorous context and often contained inaccurate information. A follow-up experiment showed viewing a humorous portrayal of food allergies had an indirect negative effect on related health policy support via decreased perceived seriousness of food allergies. Inclusion of an educational video eliminated this effect on reduced policy support, with cognitive dissonance as a mediator. Findings support the hypothesis that portraying a health condition in a humorous context may reduce perceptions of seriousness and willingness to support public health policies to address risks associated with the condition, supporting and extending prior research findings.

Features of alcohol harm reduction advertisements that most motivate reduced drinking among adults: an advertisement response study

OBJECTIVES

To improve the effectiveness of alcohol harm reduction mass media campaigns, this study aimed to (1) identify existing advertisements (ads) with greatest potential to motivate reduced alcohol consumption, (2) assess consistency across audience subgroups in ad effectiveness and (3) identify ad features associated with effectiveness.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional online ad response study with random assignment to view ads.

PARTICIPANTS

2174 Australian adult weekly drinkers recruited from an online panel.

PROCEDURE

Participants were randomly assigned to view three of 83 English-language alcohol harm reduction ads. Each ad was viewed and rated by a mean of 79 participants.

OUTCOME MEASURE

After viewing each ad, participants reported the extent to which they felt motivated to reduce their drinking. Ads were ranked from most to least motivating using predicted means adjusted for demographic characteristics and alcohol consumption. We compared the characteristics of the top-ranked 15% of ads (most motivating) with the middle 70% and bottom 15%.

RESULTS

An ad about the link between alcohol and cancer ('Spread') was most motivating, whereas an ad that encouraged drinking water instead of beer ('Add nothing') was least motivating. Top-ranked ads were more likely than other ads to feature a 'why change' message and less likely to carry a 'how to change' message; more likely to address long-term harms; more likely to be aimed at the general adult drinking population and more likely to include drinking guidelines. There was substantial overlap in top-ranked ads for younger versus older adults, men versus women and high-risk versus low-risk drinker subgroups.

CONCLUSIONS

The effectiveness of alcohol harm reduction campaigns may be improved by directly communicating alcohol's long-term harms to the general adult population of drinkers along with drinking guidelines. By doing so, campaigns can also efficiently influence high-risk drinkers and key demographic subgroups.

Alcohol harm reduction advertisements: a content analysis of topic, objective, emotional tone, execution and target audience

BACKGROUND

Public health mass media campaigns may contribute to reducing the health and social burden attributed to alcohol consumption, but little is known about which advertising characteristics have been used, or have been effective, in alcohol harm reduction campaigns to date. As a first step towards encouraging further research to identify the impact of various advertising characteristics, this study aimed to systematically identify and examine the content of alcohol harm reduction advertisements (ads).

METHOD

Ads were identified through an exhaustive internet search of Google, YouTube, Vimeo, and relevant government and health agency websites. Eligible ads were: English language, produced between 2006 and 2014, not primarily focused on drink-driving or alcohol in pregnancy, and not alcohol industry funded. Systematic content analysis of all ads was performed; each ad was double-coded.

RESULTS

In total, 110 individual ads from 72 different alcohol harm reduction campaigns were identified, with the main source countries being Australia (40%) and the United Kingdom (26%). The dominant topic for 52% of ads was short-term harms, while 10% addressed long-term harms, 18% addressed underage drinking, 17% communicated a how-to-change message, and 3% advocated for policy change. The behavioural objective of most ads was to motivate audiences to reduce their alcohol consumption (38%) or to behave responsibly and/or not get drunk when drinking (33%). Only 10% of all ads mentioned low-risk drinking guidelines. Eighty-seven percent of ads used a dramatisation execution style and 74% had a negative emotional tone. Ninety percent of ads contained messages or content that appeared to target adults, and 36% specifically targeted young adults.

CONCLUSIONS

Some message attributes have been employed more frequently than others, suggesting several promising avenues for future audience or population-based research to compare the relative effectiveness of different characteristics of alcohol harm reduction ads. Given most alcohol-attributable harm is due to long-term disease, these findings suggest future campaigns may fill a potentially important gap if they were to focus on long-term harms. There is scope for such long-term harm campaigns to place greater emphasis on encouraging reduced personal consumption of alcohol, potentially through more frequent communication of low-risk drinking guidelines.

Use of Message Stimuli in Mass Communication Experiments: A Methodological Assessment and Discussion

Using six major mass communication research journals, including Journalism Quarterly, this article examines current practices in mass communication research with respect to message experiment design, analysis, and inference, and provides a logically consistent framework for mass communication researchers to make experimental design and data analysis decisions. The proposed conceptual framework is outlined in the context of recent controversies about such experiments, including the challenge of when to treat message stimuli as random versus fixed effects.

How Perceptions of News Bias in News Sources Relate to Beliefs about Media Bias

Consumers define bias in sour ces differently than journalists do. One r eason may be thepublic perception that media generally ar ebiased.

Process Evaluation of Cancer Prevention Media Campaigns in Appalachian Ohio

The purpose of this study is to provide process data from campaigns (2009-2010) to improve colorectal cancer (CRC; intervention) screening and fruit and vegetable (F&V; comparison) consumption in 12 Appalachian Ohio counties. County-specific campaigns included one billboard, posters, and articles for local newspapers. Participants in CRC screening counties who reported seeing CRC screening billboards had greater intention to talk to a doctor/nurse about screening in the next 6 months (odds ratio [OR] = 2.92, 95% confidence interval [CI; 1.71, 4.99]) and had twice the odds of talking to a doctor/nurse about screening in the past year (OR = 2.15, 95% CI [1.29, 3.60]) compared to those who did not see the billboards. Participants in F&V counties who reported seeing F&V billboards had twice the odds (OR = 2.27, 95% CI [1.35, 3.84]) of talking to a doctor/nurse in the past year about F&Vs compared to those who did not see the billboards. Participants who reported campaign exposure lived closer to the billboards compared to those who did not report campaign exposure (mean distance in miles from home to billboard: 8.8 vs. 10.9; p < .01). Most participants reported campaign messages were clear and important. Results suggest that partnering with community members to develop campaign materials is important to ensure cultural appropriateness and that exposure to the intervention components may affect health-related outcomes.

Message Variability and Heterogeneity: A Core Challenge for Communication Research

Messages are central to human social experience, and pose key conceptual and methodological challenges in the study of communication. In response to these challenges, we outline a systematic approach to conceptualizing, operationalizing, and analyzing messages. At the conceptual level, we distinguish between two core aspects of messages: message variability (the defined and operationalized features of messages) and message heterogeneity (the undefined and unmeasured features of messages), and suggest preferred approaches to defining message variables. At the operational level, we identify message sampling, selection, and research design strategies responsive to issues of message variability and heterogeneity in experimental and survey research. At the analytical level, we highlight effective techniques to deal with message variability and heterogeneity. We conclude with seven recommendations to increase rigor in the study of communication through appropriately addressing the challenges presented by messages.

Point-of-sale tobacco marketing in rural and urban Ohio: Could the new landscape of Tobacco products widen inequalities?

Considerable research has examined how cigarette point-of-sale advertising is closely related to smoking-related disparities across communities. Yet few studies have examined marketing of alternative tobacco products (e.g., e-cigarettes). The goal of the present study was to examine external point-of-sale marketing of various tobacco products and determine its association with community-level demographics (population density, economic-disadvantage, race/ethnicity) in urban and rural regions of Ohio. During the summer of 2014, fieldworkers collected comprehensive tobacco marketing data from 199 stores in Ohio (99 in Appalachia, 100 in Columbus), including information on external features. The address of each store was geocoded to its census tract, providing information about the community in which the store was located. Results indicated that promotions for e-cigarettes and advertising for menthol cigarettes, cigarillos, and cigars were more prevalent in communities with a higher percentage of African Americans. Cigarillos advertising was more likely in high-disadvantage and urban communities. A greater variety of products were also advertised outside retailers in urban, high-disadvantage, African American communities. Findings provide evidence of differential tobacco marketing at the external point-of-sale, which disproportionately targets urban, economically-disadvantaged, and African American communities. There is a need for tobacco control policies that will help improve equity and reduce health disparities.

Community Members' Input into Cancer Prevention Campaign Development and Experience Being Featured in the Campaign

BACKGROUND

Colorectal cancer (CRC) incidence and mortality rates are increased and CRC screening rates are lower among Appalachia Ohio residents.

OBJECTIVES

We sought to describe 1) a partnership of cancer researchers and community members that developed county-specific media campaigns to improve CRC screening rates (intervention) and fruit and vegetable consumption (control) and 2) the experience of community members featured in the campaigns.

METHODS

Community members assisted with campaign development, were featured in campaigns, identified locations for materials, and promoted the campaigns. Campaigns included billboards, posters, and information in local newspapers. A mailed survey assessed featured community members' experiences in the campaigns.

LESSONS LEARNED

Ongoing communication among members of the partnership was critical to successful community-level campaigns. Featured community members had mostly positive experiences about being included in the campaigns.

CONCLUSIONS

Having a shared vision, ongoing trust, and good communication are essential elements to maintaining a viable academic-community partnership.

Reinforcing Spirals Model: Conceptualizing the Relationship Between Media Content Exposure and the Development and Maintenance of Attitudes

The Reinforcing Spirals Model (RSM, Citation Withheld) has two primary purposes. First, the RSM provides a general framework for conceptualizing media use as part of a dynamic, endogenous process combining selective exposure and media effects that may be drawn on by theorists concerned with a variety of social processes and effects. Second, the RSM utilizes a systems-theory perspective to describe how patterns of mediated and interpersonal communication contribute to the development and maintenance of social identities and ideology as well as more transient attitudes and related behaviors, and how those outcomes may influence subsequent media use. The RSM suggests contingencies that may lead to homeostasis or encourage certain individuals or groups to extreme polarization of such attitudes. In addition, the RSM proposes social cognitive mechanisms that may be responsible for attitude maintenance and reinforcement. This article discusses empirical progress in testing the model, addresses misconceptions that have arisen, and provides elaborated illustrations of the model. The article also identifies potentially fruitful directions for further conceptual development and empirical testing of the RSM.

Self-Deprecating Humor Versus Other-Deprecating Humor in Health Messages

Humor is sometimes used in health messages. However, little is known about contingencies under which different types of humor may or may not be effective. This experiment crossed humorous versus nonhumorous and self- versus other-deprecating messages about binge drinking, and tested how differences in personal investment in alcohol use moderates the effects of such messages on college binge drinkers. Results showed significant 3-way interaction effects on subjective norms and behavioral intentions largely consistent with hypotheses. Assessment of significant differences in the interactions indicated that for binge drinkers who were not high in personal investment in alcohol use, other-deprecating humor tended to reduce their perceived subjective norms about the acceptability of binge drinking behavior and their behavioral intentions. The effect of the experimental manipulation on subjective norms among these binge drinkers was shown to mediate the effect on intentions to binge drink in the future. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Comparing local TV news with national TV news in cancer coverage: an exploratory content analysis

The authors compared local TV news with national TV news in terms of cancer coverage using a nationally representative sample of local nightly TV and national network TV (i.e., ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNN) cancer news stories that aired during 2002 and 2003. Compared with national TV news, local TV cancer stories were (a) much shorter in length, (b) less likely to report on cancer prevention (i.e., preventive behaviors and screening tests), and (c) less likely to reference national organizations (i.e., National Cancer Institute, American Cancer Society, National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Food and Drug Administration) that have made clear recommendations about ways to prevent cancer. The implications of these findings for health communication research and cancer education were discussed.

Media Portrayals of Female Perpetrators of Intimate Partner Violence

Preventing intimate partner violence (IPV) is a public health priority. An important component of designing prevention programs is developing an understanding of how media portrayals of health issues influence public opinion and policy. To better understand the ways in which media images may be informing our understanding of IPV, this study content analyzed portrayals of IPV in news media articles. Stratified media outlets were used to obtain a representative sample of daily newspapers based on their designated market areas. Researchers created constructed months using weeks from each season across a 2-year period. The first part of the study investigated quantitative differences in the coverage of female and male perpetrators (n = 395) and identified several areas where coverage differed. The second part of the study qualitatively examined coverage of female perpetrators (n = 61) to provide a richer description of such coverage. This study contributes to our understanding of female perpetrators and how these portrayals may contribute to the larger gender symmetry debate surrounding female aggressors. Implications for public health policy and research are discussed.

Injury news coverage, relative concern, and support for alcohol-control policies: an impersonal impact explanation

Research on the impersonal impact hypothesis suggests that news (especially print) coverage of health and safety risks primarily influences perceptions of risk as a societal issue, and not perceptions of personal risk. The authors propose that the impersonal impact of news-impact primarily on concerns about social-level risks-will mediate effects of news stories on support for public health policies; such effects substantively matter as evidence suggests health policies, in turn, have important effects on protective behaviors and health outcomes. In an experiment using 60 randomly selected violent crime and accident news stories manipulated to contain or not contain reference to alcohol use as a causative factor, the authors find that the effect of stories that mention alcohol as a causative factor on support for alcohol-control policies is mediated by social-level concern and not by personal-level concern. In so doing, the authors provide a theoretical explanation as well as empirical evidence regarding the potential for news coverage-including breaking or episodic news-to influence health-related public policy.

Commentary on the symposium on the theory and practice of engaging youth in prevention message creation

The symposium articles address a variety of assumptions concerning interventions in which youth create prevention messaging. These articles help confirm that young people left to themselves are likely to engage in self-persuasion through such message creation but are less likely to create messages persuasive to others. However, with youth working collaboratively with persons more expert in message production, effective messaging can be created. Symposium articles also provide important and useful theoretical frameworks for the effective design of such interventions and for understanding the persuasive effects of personal narratives.

Content Analysis as a Foundation for Programmatic Research in Communication

Previous arguments that content analyses provide the descriptive foundation for media effects research (McLeod & Reeves, 1980) are extended to include that content analyses can provide a sound and useful foundation for programmatic research by individual communication scientists. I discuss examples from my own work and from that of colleagues in communication and related disciplines. Use of messages sampled and coded in a content analysis in combination with survey data sets or as stimuli in experiments are highlighted. The particular potential for employing larger numbers of randomly sampled messages in experimental designs, and, with use of appropriate statistical methods, being able to generalize to populations of messages, is described.

Fear and Anger Responses to Local News Coverage of Alcohol-Related Crimes, Accidents, and Injuries: Explaining News Effects on Policy Support Using a Representative Sample of Messages and People

An experiment investigated emotional reactions to news on policy support. Stimuli were selected from a nationally representative sample of local crime/accident news, and a nationally representative online panel of U.S. adults. Stories were manipulated to mention or not mention the role of alcohol. Anger elicited by stories increased blame of individuals, whereas fear increased consideration of contributing societal factors. Mention of alcohol increased likelihood of different emotional responses dominating--greater anger when alcohol was mentioned and greater fear when not mentioned. Such emotions influence policy support: enforcement of existing laws controlling individual behavior in addition to new laws when anger predominated, and, indirectly, support for new laws changing social context in which alcohol is promoted and sold when fear predominated.

Prospective influence of music-related media exposure on adolescent substance-use initiation: a peer group mediation model

The present study tests prospective effects of music-related media content (from television, Internet, and magazines) on youth alcohol, cigarette, and marijuana use initiation. Indirect effects through association with substance-using peers were tested in a 4-wave longitudinal data set (2,729 middle school students for the alcohol model, 2,716 students for the cigarette model, and 2,710 students for the marijuana model) from schools across the United States. In so doing, the authors examine theoretical claims regarding socialization mechanisms for effects of popular music listenership on substance use initiation. Results supported direct effects on alcohol and cigarette uptake, and indirect effects through association with substance-using peers on all 3 substances. This research, in combination with prior studies by several research teams, suggests elevated popular music involvement is a risk factor with respect to younger adolescents' substance use behavior. This influence is in part explained by the role of music-related media content in socialization to substance-using peer groups.

Anger, Sadness and Fear in Response to Breaking Crime and Accident News Stories: How Emotions Influence Support for Alcohol-Control Public Policies via Concern about Risks

Prior research shows that discrete emotions, notably anger and fear, can explain effects of news articles on health and alcohol-control policy support. This study advances prior work by coding expressed emotional responses to messages (as opposed to directly manipulated emotions or forced responses), incorporating and controlling for central thoughts, including sadness (a particularly relevant response to tragic stories), and examining concern's mediating role between emotion and policy support. An experiment with a national online adult panel had participants read one of 60 violent crime or accident news stories, each manipulated to mention or withhold alcohol's causal contribution. Multi-group structural equation models suggest that stories not mentioning alcohol had a direct effect on policy support via fear and central thoughts, unmediated by concern. When alcohol was mentioned, sadness and anger affects alcohol-control support through concern. Findings help confirm that emotional responses are key in determining news story effects on public support of health policies.

Provider portrayals and patient-provider communication in drama and reality medical entertainment television shows

Portrayals of physicians on medical dramas have been the subject of research attention. However, such research has not examined portrayals of interactions between physicians and patients, has not compared physician portrayals on medical dramas versus on medical reality programs, and has not fully examined portrayals of physicians who are members of minority groups or who received their education internationally. This study content-analyzes 101 episodes (85 hours) of such programs broadcast during the 2006-2007 viewing season. Findings indicate that women are underrepresented as physicians on reality shows, though they are no longer underrepresented as physicians on dramas. However, they are not as actively portrayed in patient-care interactions as are male physicians on medical dramas. Asians and international medical graduates are underrepresented relative to their proportion in the U.S. physician population, the latter by almost a factor of 5. Many (but certainly not all) aspects of patient-centered communication are modeled, more so on reality programs than on medical dramas. Differences in patient-provider communication portrayals by minority status and gender are reported. Implications for public perception of physicians and expectations regarding provider-patient interaction are discussed.

Hollow iron oxide nanoparticles for application in lithium ion batteries

Material design in terms of their morphologies other than solid nanoparticles can lead to more advanced properties. At the example of iron oxide, we explored the electrochemical properties of hollow nanoparticles with an application as a cathode and anode. Such nanoparticles contain very high concentration of cation vacancies that can be efficiently utilized for reversible Li ion intercalation without structural change. Cycling in high voltage range results in high capacity (∼132 mAh/g at 2.5 V), 99.7% Coulombic efficiency, superior rate performance (133 mAh/g at 3000 mA/g) and excellent stability (no fading at fast rate during more than 500 cycles). Cation vacancies in hollow iron oxide nanoparticles are also found to be responsible for the enhanced capacity in the conversion reactions. We monitored in situ structural transformation of hollow iron oxide nanoparticles by synchrotron X-ray absorption and diffraction techniques that provided us clear understanding of the lithium intercalation processes during electrochemical cycling.

Increasing support for alcohol-control enforcement through news coverage of alcohol's role in injuries and crime

OBJECTIVE

Prior research has shown that the proportion of news stories about violent crimes, car crashes, and other unintended injuries that mention the possible contributing role of alcohol is far lower than the actual proportion of alcohol-related crimes and unintended injuries. An experiment was conducted to test the hypothesis that inclusion of such mention can increase concern about alcohol risks and support for alcohol-control measures, which have elsewhere been shown to decrease alcohol-related problems in community settings. Methodologically, we provide a model for experiments permitting generalization across randomly selected message stimuli.

METHOD

Sixty randomly selected local news stories on violent crime, motor vehicle crashes, and other unintended injuries from newspapers throughout the United States were manipulated into versions including or not including alcohol as a causative factor. Participants (n = 785) were drawn from a national online research panel representative of the U.S. population; 66% of panel members contacted agreed to participate. Data were analyzed using mixed-effect, multilevel models to permit generalization across message and participant variability.

RESULTS

Mention of alcohol in news stories increased support for enforcement of alcohol-control laws.

CONCLUSIONS

Efforts to increase mention of alcohol as a causative factor in news reports of violent crime and unintended injury have the potential to increase public support for alcohol-control policies.

Examination of the Predictors of Latent Class Typologies of Bullying Involvement among Middle School Students

This study employs latent class analysis to construct bullying involvement typologies among 3114 students (48% male, 58% White) in 40 middle schools across the U.S. Four classes were constructed: victims (15%); bullies (13%); bully-victims (13%); and noninvolved (59%). Respondents who were male and participated in fewer conventional activities were more likely to be members of the victims class. Students who were African-American and reported being less successful at school had a higher likelihood of membership in the bullies class. Bully-victims shared characteristics with bullies and victims: Students with more feelings of anger toward others and a higher tendency toward sensation-seeking had a higher likelihood of membership in the bullies and bully-victims classes, whereas lower levels of social inclusion was associated with membership in the victims and bully-victims classes.

The Belief that Alcohol Use is Inconsistent with Personal Autonomy: A Promotive Factor for Younger Adolescents

This study explored an understudied promotive factor, a belief that alcohol use is inconsistent with personal autonomy, which may reduce adolescent intention to drink and subsequent alcohol use. Autonomy was examined as an attitudinal construct within the Theory of Reasoned Action. Longitudinal data from 2,493 seventh grade students nested in 40 schools were analyzed using a structural equation model. Autonomy was negatively correlated with intention to use alcohol and subsequent alcohol use at a later wave, and intention to use fully mediated the effect of autonomy on subsequent alcohol use. These results are consistent with the proposition that when personal autonomy is perceived as inconsistent with alcohol use among younger adolescents, students indicate a lower intention to use alcohol and use less alcohol during the following school year.

Effects of adverts from a drug and alcohol prevention campaign on willingness to engage in alcohol-related risky behaviors

Behavioral willingness is conceptualized as a pathway to behavior that is non-deliberative, yet traditional measures require thoughtful deliberation to complete. This study explored non-deliberative measures of alcohol-related willingness to complement recent work on marijuana-related willingness. The study also examined whether adverts from a field-tested drug and alcohol prevention campaign may have operated by influencing alcohol-related willingness. Participants viewed campaign adverts or consumer adverts (control). Outcomes were reaction times to make speeded judgments about whether one would engage in risky alcohol-related behaviors. Results showed that campaign advertisements lowered willingness to play drinking games and (for males) to drive while intoxicated.

The effects of drug-prevention messages on the accessibility of identity-related constructs

Recent theoretical work has posited that the self-system guides behavior via currently activated self-concepts. The authors adopted this framework to the study of drug-prevention messages by examining the extent to which messages can alter the accessibility of views of self and of drugs that would support nonuse. Participants were exposed to 1 of 3 print-ad conditions: autonomy-themed prevention messages (treatment), health-information themed prevention messages (comparison), and informational consumer ads (control). Outcomes were reaction times to make dichotomous judgments. Relative to comparison and control ads, treatment ads were more successful at activating a self-view as a nonuser, a view that marijuana use is inconsistent with autonomy, and unwillingness to use marijuana. Post-hoc analysis revealed that the effect of ad condition on unwillingness was partially mediated by the accessibility of self-view as a nonuser.