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Comparative Study
. 2017 Apr;40(2):352-359.
doi: 10.1007/s10865-016-9795-x. Epub 2016 Sep 23.

Communicating about cigarette smoke constituents: an experimental comparison of two messaging strategies

Sabeeh A Baig  1 , M Justin Byron  1   2 , Marcella H Boynton  1   2 , Noel T Brewer  1   2 , Kurt M Ribisl  3   4
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Communicating about cigarette smoke constituents: an experimental comparison of two messaging strategies

Sabeeh A Baig et al. J Behav Med. 2017 Apr.

Abstract

Federal law now requires FDA to disseminate information on chemicals in cigarette smoke, but it is unclear how best to do so. In a 2 × 2 between-subjects experiment, participants received a message about chemicals in cigarette smoke (e.g., "Cigarette smoke has benzene.") along with an additional randomly assigned messaging strategy: a "found-in" (e.g., "This is found in gasoline."), a health effect (e.g., "This causes heart disease."), both, or neither. Participants were U.S. probability phone samples of 5000 adults and 1123 adolescents, and an online convenience sample of 4130 adults. Adding a health effect elicited greater discouragement from wanting to smoke cigarettes (all p < .05) as did adding a found-in (all p < .05). However, including both messaging strategies added little or nothing above including just one. These findings can help the FDA and other agencies develop effective and parsimonious messages about cigarette smoke constituents.

Keywords: Cigarette smoke constituents; Common products; Health communication; Health effects; Tobacco control.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Panel 1 (top): Interaction between health effect and found-in strategies. Panel 2 (bottom): Interaction between found-in and smoking status. Error bars show standard errors
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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