ABSTRACTS

Volume 11, Number 8
December 2006

Vol. 11, Number 8: Contents | Editorial | Abstracts

Understanding Consumers' Health Information Preferences Development and Validation of a Brief Screening Instrument
    Edward W. Maibach A1, Deanne Weber A2, Holly Massett A3, Gregory R. Hancock A4, Simani Price A5

A1 Public Health Communication & Marketing Program, George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
A2 Porter Novelli, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
A3 National Cancer Institute, Rockville, Maryland, USA
A4 University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA
A5 Westat, Rockville, Maryland, USA

The impact of health communication is generally enhanced when it is targeted or tailored to the needs of a specific population or individual. In a segmentation analysis of the U.S adult population—using data from 2,636 respondents to a mail panel survey—we identified four segments of the adult population that vary significantly with regard to health information preferences based on their degree of engagement in health enhancement, and their degree of independence in health decision making. We also created a brief (10 item), easy-to-administer screening instrument that indicates into which segment people fall. The purpose of this article is to describe the segments, and the screening instrument, and to present initial tests of its validity. We believe this instrument offers a practical tool for differentiating motivationally coherent subgroups of the adult population with regard to their health information preferences, and therefore may have practical value in improving health communication and health services provision efforts. Additional research is needed to further validate the tool and test its utility in guiding the creation of targeted health messages and programs.

Explaining the Increase in Condom Use Among South African Young Females
    Itamar Katz A1

A1 Department of Geography, Cambridge University, Cambridge, United Kingdom

Since 1998 South Africa has experienced stability in HIV prevalence among its 15 to 19 year olds, and to a lesser extent among its 20 to 24 year olds. While a few studies point to behavioural change, mainly an increase in condom use, none has established the reasons. This article explores the influence of various information sources about AIDS upon the use of condoms among rural and urban South African young females, using the South Africa Demographic Health Survey of 1998 (1998 SADHS), while controlling for various socioeconomic and cultural parameters.

The results show that condom use among urban residents was positively correlated with mass media exposure, television as a source of information about AIDS, and the number of mass media sources from which the respondent received information about AIDS. Condom use among rural residents was associated with the number of sources of information about AIDS, exposure to mass media, and the language and education of the respondent. Among urban residents condom use was almost twice as high as among rural residents.

The results from the article indicate that three elements influenced the increase in condom use among females: the threat of AIDS, mass media, and receptiveness to condom use. The receptiveness was culturally dependent.

“Live and Let Live”: An Analysis of HIV/AIDS-Related Stigma and Discrimination in International Campaign Posters
     Leanne Johnny A1 and Claudia Mitchell A2

A1 Department of Integrated Studies in Education, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
A2 Faculty of Education, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

As a corollary to The Declaration of Commitment adopted by the United Nations General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS in June 2001, UNAIDS developed a World AIDS Campaign that sought to eradicate HIV/AIDS-related stigma and discrimination. The campaign incorporated several educational strategies, including a poster campaign that advocated the just and equal treatment of people living with HIV/AIDS. In an effort to develop an understanding of these educational efforts, this study deconstructs the 2002–2003 World AIDS Campaign posters. While the overall results suggest that the campaign has been successful in redefining images of HIV/AIDS, they also show that certain aspects of these posters may actually serve to reinforce stigma and discrimination. Using a visual studies approach to textual analysis, this study explores the underlying ideological and cultural assumptions that exist within the posters and provides a method for evaluating such materials.

Changing Smoking Attitudes by Strengthening Weak Antismoking Beliefs—Taiwan as an Example
    Chingching Chang A1

A1 Department of Advertising, National Chengchi University, Taipei, Taiwan

I first explored the strength of Taiwanese high school students' beliefs regarding five antismoking messages. Findings of a nationwide survey showed that the students held these beliefs in the following order of decreasing strength: second-hand smoke damages health, smoking has long-term health consequences, smoking has short-term health consequences, cigarette marketers are manipulative, and smokers are perceived negatively. Experiment one further showed that antismoking ads featuring weakly held beliefs are more effective than those featuring strongly held beliefs. Experiment two demonstrated that antismoking campaigns need to be framed carefully; in general, it is more effective to positively frame messages about strongly held antismoking beliefs but negatively frame messages about weakly held antismoking beliefs.

Going Beyond Exposure to Local News Media: An Information-Processing Examination of Public Perceptions of Food Safety
   Kenneth Fleming A1, Esther Thorson A1, Yuyan Zhang A1

A1 University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, Missouri, USA

The relationship between local news media and public perceptions of food safety was examined in a statewide telephone survey (n = 524). The theoretical framework of the study was based on a review of the social and psychological factors that affect public concerns about food safety, the relationship between mass communication and risk perception, and the thesis of information-processing strategies and its impact on learning from the news. The results show that information-processing strategies substantially mediated the relationship between local news media and public perceptions of food safety, with elaborative processing being more influential than active reflection in people's learning from the news media. Attention to local television had an independent effect, after demographics, awareness of food safety problems, and perceived safety of local food supply were statistically controlled. Other important predictors included gender, education, ethnicity, and perceived safety of local food supply.

Book Review

A Review of: “Eriksson-Backa, Kristina. (2003). In Sickness and in Health: How Information and Knowledge are Related to Health Behavior: Abo (Turku) Finland: Abo Akademi University Press.
Jennifer Burek Pierce