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Editor’s Note:
Today,
it seems I hear more about 21st Century measurements and interventions
aimed to build upon what the Ancient Greeks heralded thousands of years
ago - trust is central to life. We all need to respect it and work toward
maximizing it in the modern day society. While trust is central, oftentimes
in developing health policy, the health "polity" responsible
for such declarations misses this key element. In a list citing the
11 value-driven issues that interact with the creation and implementation
of policy, it includes democracy, equity, fairness, evidence, efficiency
and creativity, but does not include trust. The new emerging problem
of XDR TB, for example, requires a strong response to galvanize society
based upon the trust and successes of public health interventions. If
one would consider partnerships that have been successful in smallpox
and polio eradication, we may be able to move forward on TB and other
public health challenges that have been missing in the public health
fatigue that limits innovation. Trust in the future with physical and
social science could develop innovative medicines, diagnostics, vaccines
and public policy. While there multiple sectors in the health polity
setting standards, proclaiming challenges for this millennium, and galvanizing
resources, we should all consider ways to enhance our reach and impact
for the people we are trying to assist and the health we are trying
to advance with an ethical approach that includes trust, value based
communication, and evidence informed policymaking.
Read more in my recent
editorial.
Scott
C. Ratzan, MD, MPA
Editor-in-Chief,
Journal
of Health Communication
Vice
President, Government Affairs, Europe
Johnson
& Johnson
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Table of Contents
Recent
Article in JHC:
Volume 12
Issue 5 (July/August 2007)
Click
on the title to read a short summary of the article
- An
Exploratory Study of Older Adults' Comprehension of Printed Cancer Information:
Is Readability a Key Factor?
-- Daniela B. Friedman and Laurie Hoffman-Goetz
Friedman and Hoffman-Goetz assessed the comprehension of older adults
reading breast, prostate, and colorectal information on the Internet
and determined if comprehension of cancer information varied according
to text readability. Results of their research suggest that there are
gaps in older adults' understanding of cancer prevention and screening
information, especially for colorectal cancer, a disease for which public
awareness is quite low. While text readability may contribute to older
adults' understanding of cancer information, prior knowledge, relevance
and tailoring of the content may also influence comprehension. Plain
language, together with age- and culturally-relevant, educational resources
are required to improve older adults' knowledge about cancer and to
reduce the public's misconceptions about cancer risk.
- Evaluating
the Effects of a Youth Health Media Campaign
-- Christopher E. Beaudoin and Esther Thorson
Beaudoin and Thorson evaluated the effectiveness of a youth health campaign
that disseminated socially-oriented media messages. They recommend that
youth health initiatives should consider socially-oriented strategies,
including those targeting social connections between adults and youth.
Because of the tenacity of behaviors, it is important that media campaign
messages are disseminated over extended periods of time, with strategic
decisions made over time to hone messaging. Survey methods that track
changes via small increments in time (ie, the week) can provide insight
into the nuances of campaign effects and attitudinal and behavioral
development.
- Does
Entertainment-Education Work With Latinos in the United States? Identification
and the Effects of a Telenovela Breast Cancer Storyline
-- Holley A. Wilkin; Thomas W. Valente; Sheila Murphy; Michael J.
Cody; Grace Huang; and Vicki Beck
Wilkin et al., examined whether entertainment-education works with Latinos
in the United States. Results from this study suggest that providing
accurate health information in entertainment programs can increase knowledge
among Latinos in the U.S. Identification with telenovela characters
results in an increased likelihood of talking to others about health
topics in shows, calling hotlines, and improved knowledge about health
issues included in the programs. We should provide accurate health information
to writers of popular television programming viewed by audiences at
greatest risk for preventable diseases. We should also encourage the
inclusion of health stories affecting popular characters with whom the
audience are most likely to identify.
- The
Impact of the Cox-2 Inhibitor Issue on Perceptions of the Pharmaceutical
Industry: Content Analysis and Communication Implications
-- Ragnar E. Lofstedt
Lofstedt explores how large, multinational pharmaceutical companies
can better communicate risks by analysis of one specific case, namely,
that of the Cox-2 controversy. The Cox-2 controversy has had a number
of effects, both on the pharmaceutical companies themselves, as well
as on the regulators and the drug-taking consumer. Among the more important
ones include the issue of increased risk aversion among pharmaceutical
companies and greater public concern about drug taking.
- Narrative
Intervention in Behavior and Public Health
-- Joseph Petraglia
Petraglia proposes recasting "entertainment-education" as
narrative intervention projects. Narratives are the means by which experience
is stored and indexed in memory and thus, narrative intervention is
a suitable means of encouraging behavior change. The structure of narrative
varies in different societies for reasons of literacy as well as culture.
Most public health projects using narrative formats focus on production
due to the logistics of implementation as well as the shift towards
the social and away from the individual. When people learn from stories,
it is no longer accurate or productive to think in terms of discrete
"messaging" but rather in terms of altering worldviews. Recasting
"entertainment-education" as narrative intervention opens
up new lines of inquiry and can contribute to providing the field of
public health with a more cogent understanding of how behavior change
is effected.
Related
Articles
Volume
12 Issue 6 (September 2007)
Click on the title to read a short summary of the
article.
- Determinants
of Physician Discussion Regarding Tobacco and Alcohol Abuse
-- Klea D. Bertakis and Rahman Azari
The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends that clinicians screen
adults for tobacco and alcohol abuse and provide appropriate interventions.
Bertakis and Azari employed direct observation and interactional analysis
of medical visits to investigate factors associated with physician discussion
of tobacco and alcohol use with patients. Evidence was found here for
which patient factors influence the discussion of tobacco and alcohol
abuse during initial medical visits.
- Public
Meetings About Suspected Cancer Clusters: The Impact of Voice, Interactional
Justice, and Risk Perception on Attendees' Attitudes in Six Communities
-- Katherine A. McComas; Craig W. Trumbo; and John C. Besley
McComas and colleagues investigated the influence of public meetings
held about possible cancer clusters in six communities in the United
States. They found that people who attend public meetings about local
health risks pay attention to the fairness of the meetings. To promote
fairness, results suggest that health officials organizing public meetings
should treat people who attend with honesty, dignity, and respect while
also minimizing the existence as well as any appearance of procedural
bias. Health officials should also structure public meetings and overall
engagement processes to ensure that people who attend have a measure
of control or voice in the process. Although this research focused on
public meetings used during cancer cluster investigations, results suggest
that organizational justice may provide a useful framework for evaluating
health communication in other settings.
- Evaluating
a Minor Storyline on ER About Teen Obesity, Hypertension, and 5 A Day
-- Thomas W. Valente; Sheila Murphy; Grace Huang; Jodi Gusek; Jennie
Greene; and Vicki Beck
Valente et al. evaluated the effects of an ER (NBC) storyline about
teen obesity, hypertension and 5 A Day on knowledge, attitudes, and
behavior. Results showed that the storyline affected self reported behavior
change and had modest impacts on knowledge, attitudes, and practices.
Future research should explore the relative importance of demographic
characteristics of characters such as gender, race, age, and self-reported
level of identification, storyline involvement, and other factors in
entertainment education. FULL
TEXT 
-
Attitude
Toward Direct-to-Consumer Advertising and Drug Inquiry Intention:
The Moderating Role of Perceived Knowledge
-- Soontae An
An examined two behavioral intent variables related to DTCA exposure.
From her research she found that in general, those with positive views
of DTCA are more likely to ask their doctor about an advertised drug
and insist prescription of a specific drug they saw advertised. More
importantly, the effect of attitude toward DTCA is moderated by consumers'
perceived health knowledge. The effect of attitude toward DTCA is
greater in magnitude for those with high perceived knowledge than
those with low perceived knowledge. Results indicate a possible inadequacy
of DTCA for those who perceive themselves as not knowledgeable. For
the proponents of DTCA to contend its educational value, it is important
to show greater, or at least sufficient, utilization of ad information
by those with low perceived knowledge.
- Processing
Radio PSAs: Production Pacing, Arousing Content, and Age
-- Annie Lang; Nancy Schwartz; Seungjo Lee; and James Angelini
Lang et. al. examined differences in how tweens (13-17 year olds) and
college students process anti-drug radio public service announcements.
Arousing content is necessary to maintain tweens interest throughout
the message and faster pacing is a must during calm messages for tweens.
These younger listeners are responding more strongly to both the structural
features and the arousing content than are the college students. This
would suggest that when producing messages for tween audiences, production
pacing and arousing content may be more successful strategies for eliciting
responses. On the other hand, for older listeners, production pacing
may not be a particularly useful technique for increasing message effectiveness.
Related Articles
Featured
Book Review
A Review of: "Tones, K. & Green,
G. (2004). Health Promotion: Planning and Strategies" London: Sage
Publications, 392 pp., ISBN: 0761974490 (paperback); $49.95 ISBN: 0761974482
hardcover (Hardcover) $125.00. Reviewed by Kathryn Hambleton
Click
here to read the entire review
Job Announcement
HEALTH COMMUNICATIONS & MARKETING
ASSOCIATE OR FULL PROFESSOR
FACULTY POSITION
The Department of Prevention and Community Health in The George Washington
University School of Public Health and Health Services seeks an energetic,
resourceful, and visionary health communications scholar to provide leadership
and administer its ongoing program in Public Health Communications &
Marketing, and to participate and advise in the planning of a communications
and marketing concentration in Global Health. Additionally, the successful
candidate will be expected to engage in collaborative and interdisciplinary
work across all departments of the School of Public Health and Health
Services, supporting existing programs in areas such as child survival,
maternal and adolescent health, nutrition, HIV/AIDS, violence prevention,
environmental health, and domestic and international health policy. This
is a tenure earning or nontenure earning position at the Associate or
Full Professor level, commensurate upon experience. This recruitment represents
an excellent opportunity for an outstanding individual to build on established
programs and forge new collaborations with major agencies and organizations
in the D.C. area that focus on domestic and global health. The Department
of Prevention and Community Health recruits approximately 75 graduate
students annually and the Department of Global Health recruits approximately
80 graduate students annually, with 1020 students in the Health Communications
& Marketing track. Click here for more information and instructions
on how to apply: http://www.gwumc.edu/sphhs/faculty/downloads/PHCM_Director.pdf
Meetings
and Announcements
APHA Routldege Booth
Routledge Journals is having a booth
at the 2007 APHA Meeting. Please visit BOOTH #321 to view the full range
of journals and books published by Routledge and Lawrence Erlbaum
Associates.
APHA Attendees: Attend a Social Marketing
Forum
Please join us for Conversations on Social
Marketing, a two-part forum sponsored by Population Services International
(PSI) in collaboration with the Department of Prevention and Community
Health at George Washington University School of Public Health and Health
Services. This event will be held on Monday, November 5, 2007 and Tuesday,
November 6, 2007 from 1:00 to 5:00pm at the Jack Morton Auditorium, 805
21st Street, NW, Washington, DC 20052 (Foggy Bottom-GWU metro). Registration
on both days begins at 12:30pm. Space is limited. Please register by by
sending an email to mlcurie@psi.org
and let us know which day(s) you are registering for.
Conversations on Social Marketing is a two-part
forum offering four presentations highlighting evidence-based best practices
and state-of-the-art practices/approaches that can be applied to social
marketing projects in order to enhance their planning and implementation
and further their impact. The presentations will be followed by a conversation
with Craig Lefebvre, PSI's Chief Technical Officer including questions/comments
from the audience. The forum will feature Katya Andresen, Vice President
for Marketing, Network for Good and author of the book, Robin Hood Marketing:
Stealing Corporate Savvy to Sell Just Causes, on the essential components
of social marketing for nonprofit organizations; Doug Evans, Vice President
for Public Health and Environment at RTI International, on the application
of brands to public health behaviors.
Richard Pollard, consultant and specialist
in the Total Market Approach to social marketing management, and creator
of the Constraints Resolution Model for BCC program on the Total Market
Approach; Gregory Cowal, founding member of Global Marketing Services
and President of Grupo Sur Promociones on High Frequency Stores Strategies.
Feedback and ideas for
content for this newsletter should be sent to Wendy Meltzer (iphwxm@gwumc.edu)
Visit
the Routledge Communication Arena at
http://www.communicationarena.com/, an
online resource for Communication academics, students and practitioners.
The
George Washington University Center for Global Health houses the
editorial office of The Journal of Health Communication.
The Johnson & Johnson Centre for Advancing Health
Information contributes to improving health communication and patient
information as a sponsor of this newsletter.
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