Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2017 Mar;22(3):254-261.
doi: 10.1080/10810730.2016.1268222. Epub 2017 Feb 19.

Countering Craving with Disgust Images: Examining Nicotine Withdrawn Smokers' Motivated Message Processing of Anti-Tobacco Public Service Announcements

Russell B Clayton  1 , Glenn Leshner  2 , Rachel L Tomko  3 , Timothy J Trull  4 , Thomas M Piasecki  4
Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Countering Craving with Disgust Images: Examining Nicotine Withdrawn Smokers' Motivated Message Processing of Anti-Tobacco Public Service Announcements

Russell B Clayton et al. J Health Commun. 2017 Mar.

Abstract

There is a lack of research examining whether smoking cues in anti-tobacco advertisements elicit cravings, or whether this effect is moderated by countervailing message attributes, such as disgusting images. Furthermore, no research has examined how these types of messages influence nicotine withdrawn smokers' cognitive processing and associated behavioral intentions. At a laboratory session, participants (N = 50 nicotine-deprived adults) were tested for cognitive processing and recognition memory of 12 anti-tobacco advertisements varying in depictions of smoking cues and disgust content. Self-report smoking urges and intentions to quit smoking were measured after each message. The results from this experiment indicated that smoking cue messages activated appetitive/approach motivation resulting in enhanced attention and memory, but increased craving and reduced quit intentions. Disgust messages also enhanced attention and memory, but activated aversive/avoid motivation resulting in reduced craving and increased quit intentions. The combination of smoking cues and disgust content resulted in moderate amounts of craving and quit intentions, but also led to heart rate acceleration (indicating defensive processing) and poorer recognition of message content. These data suggest that in order to counter nicotine-deprived smokers' craving and prolong abstinence, anti-tobacco messages should omit smoking cues but include disgust. Theoretical implications are also discussed.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Output for self-report smoking behaviors. SC−/LD = absent smoking cues/low disgust ads, SC−/HD = absent smoking cues/high disgust ads, SC+/LD = present smoking cues/low disgust ads, SC+/HD = present smoking cues/high disgust ads. All messages were 30 seconds in duration.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Heart rate by time for smoking cues and disgust.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Heart rate by time for disgust as a function of smoking cues.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Bartholow BD, Bolls P. Media psychophysiology: The brain. In: Dill K, editor. The Oxford handbook of media psychology. New York, NY: Oxford University Press; 2013. p. 474.
    1. Beaudoin CE. Exploring antismoking ads: Appeals, themes, and consequences. Journal of Health Communication. 2002;7:123–137. doi: 10.1080/10810730290088003. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Benowitz NL, Jacob P, III, Ahijevych K, Jarvis MJ, Hall S, LeHouezec J, … Hurt RD. Biochemical verification of tobacco use and cessation. Nicotine & Tobacco Research. 2002;4(2) doi: 10.1080/14622200210123581. - DOI
    1. Brown S, Locker E. Defensive responses to an emotive anti-alcohol message. Psychology & Health. 2009;24:517–528. doi: 10.1080/08870440801911130. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Bruner GC. Marketing Scales Handbook. 1. Vol. 5. Carbondale, IL: GCBII Productions; 2009.

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources