ABSTRACTS

Volume 9, Number 1
January-February 2004

Vol. 9, Number 1: Contents | Editorial | Abstracts

Alcohol Advertising Exposure and Perceptions: Links with Alcohol Expectancies and Intentions to Drink or Drinking in Underaged Youth and Young Adults
    KENNETH FLEMING A1, ESTHER THORSON A1, CHARLES K. ATKIN A2

A1 University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, Missouri, USA
A2 Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA

This study tests whether the impact of alcohol advertising exposure on intentions to drink and actual consumption is mediated by cognitive responses to advertising messages and positive expectancies about alcohol use. The model was tested using survey data of two important age cohorts, 15 to 20 years (n=608) and 21 to 29 years (n=612). The findings show that alcohol advertising was influential in shaping young people's attitudes and perceptions about alcohol advertising messages. The attitudes and perceptions predicted both positive expectancies and intentions to drink of those under the legal drinking age, but did not affect the young adults' expectancies and consumption. Positive expectancies were powerful predictors of intentions to drink and consumption for both groups. The effects of alcohol advertising on intentions to drink of those aged 15 to 20 years were mediated by cognitive responses to advertising messages and positive expectancies. The mediation effect was not evident among those between 21 and 29 years.

Preventing Domestic Violence in the African American Community: Assessing the Impact of a Dramatic Radio Serial
     RICARDO J. WRAY A1, ROBERT M. HORNIK A2, OSCAR H. GANDY A3, JO STRYKER A4, MARISSA GHEZ A5, KELLY MITCHELL-CLARK A6

A1 Health Communication Research Laboratory, Saint Louis University School of Public Health, Saint Louis, Missouri
A2 The Annenberg Public Policy Center and The Annenberg School for Communication, The University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
A3 The Annenberg School for Communication, The University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
A4 University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, Illinois
A5 Open Society Institute, Washington, DC
A6 The Family Violence Prevention Fund, San Francisco, California

This article reports on the evaluation of "It's Your Business," a dramatic radio serial promoting domestic violence prevention in the African-American community that was made available for national broadcast. Radio stations in 4 study cities committed to airing the broadcasts. However, in only 1 of the 4 was the broadcast carried out in even a limited way. Consequently, only data from one city could be used to assess impact. Even there only 9 percent of the sample could confidently be called exposed, answering a recall question correctly and claiming to hear more than 2 episodes. These moderately exposed respondents scored higher than non-exposed respondents on 21 out of 27 anti-domestic violence beliefs and behaviors; 10 differences were statistically significant. However, the moderate exposure group only displayed stronger outcomes than a group who claimed exposure but could not recall much about the program in 2 out of the 27 outcomes at a statistically significant level. We conclude that the association of moderate exposure and anti-domestic violence outcomes was most likely an artifact of selective perception, and not a result of exposure alone. The evaluation points to the need to better understand how exposure can be achieved to complement our work on developing messages.

Colon Cancer: Risk Perceptions and Risk Communication
     NEIL D. WEINSTEIN A1, KATHY ATWOOD A2, ELAINE PULEO A3, ROBERT FLETCHER A4, GRAHAM COLDITZ A5, KAREN M. EMMONS A6

A1 Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA
A2 Harvard School of Public Health, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
A3 University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
A4 Department of Ambulatory Care and Prevention, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
A5 Harvard Center for Cancer Prevention, Channing Laboratory, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
A6 Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA

Members of a health maintenance organization (N=353) interacted with a computer program that provided personalized information about their risk of developing colon cancer in the next 20 years. Prior to computer feedback, most people greatly overestimated their numerical, absolute risk (chances per 1000) and also overestimated their relative risk compared to peers (e.g., "above average"). Their relative risk estimates were correlated with several risk factors, whereas their absolute risk estimates were not, suggesting that assessing individual risk perceptions with numerical, absolute risk scales may provide misleading information about what people believe. Computer feedback improved the accuracy of mean risk estimates, but about half of participants did not accept the personalized feedback as correct. In fact, correlations between actual and perceived risk were no greater among participants who received risk scores than among those who did not. Three possible explanations for resistance to lower-than-expected risk feedback are considered.

Communicating Health Information to an Alarmed Public Facing a Threat Such as a Bioterrorist Attack
    JOHN HOBBS A1, ANNE KITTLER A2, SUSANNAH FOX A3, BLACKFORD MIDDLETON A4, DAVID W. BATES A5

A1 Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
A2 Partners Information Systems, Department of Clinical and Quality Analysis
A3 Pew Internet & American Life Project, Washington, DC, USA
A4 Clinical Informatics Research and Development, Boston, MA, USA
A5 Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA Partners Information Systems, Department of Clinical and Quality Analysis

Considerable literature exists on the communication of risk to the public through channels such as television, radio, and newspapers. However, little has been written on the communication of risk through less traditional communication forms, such as the Internet. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of the Internet as an additional source of health information to that provided by the traditional news media in managing the public's response to an emerging health risk such as a bioterrorist attack. Despite some of the Internet's advantages over traditional media, including the depth and speed in which information can be conveyed to different audiences, the Internet was underutilized during fall 2001, when it became important to convey information on the risks of anthrax. A number of developments are required if the health care system is to capitalize on the Internet's potential as a risk communication device. These developments include research into public Internet searching behavior and further development in the role of search engines and government agencies in organizing quality health information.

Knowledge and Practice Related to Trachoma Among Children in Vietnam: A Cross-Sectional Study
     RAJIV KHANDEKAR A1, MARTIN BULLARD A2, TON THI KIM THANH A3, TRAN QUOC BINH A4

A1 Ophthalmologist, Hon. Attache physician, British Columbia Center for Epidemiologic and International Ophthalmology, St Paul Hospital, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
A2 Director, Trachoma control program, International Development Enterprise, Vietnam
A3 Director, National Institute of Ophthalmology, Hanoi, Vietnam
A4 Communication manager, International Development Enterprise (IDE), Vietnam

A cross-sectional descriptive survey to determine the magnitude and determinants of knowledge and practice in relation to trachoma among children in Vietnam is presented. Interviews were conducted with 358 children ages 6 to 15 years in three districts of Northern Vietnam using a closed-ended questionnaire. Responses related to causes, prevention methods, consequences, and observed preventive practices were standardized. The knowledge of causes of trachoma and prevention methods was assessed as "excellent" in 61.1% and 69.45% of female and male children, respectively. Mode of transmission and consequences of trachoma were very well known to 68.70% and 57.74% of female and male children, respectively. Trachoma control practice was excellent in 54.72% of children. Females had better knowledge, and practice of trachoma control was better in female than male children. Ten- to 15-year-olds had better knowledge and practices than 6- to 10-year-old children. Trachoma knowledge and practice was better in children of Vinh Loc District of Thanh Hoa Province than in those in Tu Ky District of Hai Duong Province. The schools were the best source of the information. Mass media had a limited role. The outcome suggested a limited positive impact of the 6 months intense initiatives of a health education campaign. Based on the study results, the campaign could be reorganized to focus on high-risk groups and to improve the impact. The findings could be compared to the results of a similar study after 2 years of the campaign.

Book Review

Combating AIDS: Communication strategies in action
Singhal, A.and Rogers, E.(2003).
Reviewed by Michael Slater Colorado State University