Deceived,Disgusted, and Defensive: Motivated Processing of Anti-Tobacco Advertisements

A 2 × 2 experiment was conducted, where participants watched anti-tobacco messages that varied in deception (content portraying tobacco companies as dishonest) and disgust (negative graphic images) content. Psychophysiological measures, self-report, and a recognition test were used to test hypotheses generated from the motivated cognition framework. The results of this study indicate that messages containing both deception and disgust push viewers into a cascade of defensive responses reflected by increased self-reported unpleasantness, reduced resources allocated to encoding, worsened recognition memory, and dampened emotional responses compared to messages depicting one attribute or neither. Findings from this study demonstrate the value of applying a motivated cognition theoretical framework in research on responses to emotional content in health messages and support previous research on defensive processing and message design of anti-tobacco messages.     

Countering Craving with Disgust Images: Examining Nicotine Withdrawn Smokers’ Motivated Message Processing of Anti-Tobacco Public Service Announcements

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 Furthermore, no research has examined how these types of messages influence nicotine withdrawn smokers’ cognitive processing and associated behavioral intentions.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.     

Discard the Smoking Cues—Keep the Disgust: An Investigation of Tobacco Smokers’ Motivated Processing of Anti-tobacco Commercials

This study experimentally examines the effect of smoking cues and disgust images commonly found in anti-tobacco advertisements on tobacco smokers’ message processing. In a 2 (smoking cues) × 2 (disgust) within-subjects experiment, smokers watched anti-tobacco advertisements selected to vary in presence/absence of smoking cues and high/low ratings of disgust. The results of the experiment suggest that smoking cues and disgust images each have effects on resource allocation, recognition memory, emotional responses, smoking urges, and intentions to quit smoking. However, the most notable finding in this study was how the combination of smoking cues and disgust images in a single anti-tobacco message resulted in defensive message processing. Theoretical and applied implications of these findings are discussed along with future research directions.     

Potential effectiveness of anti-smoking advertisement types in ten low and middle income countries: Do demographics,smoking characteristics and cultural differences matter?

Unlike high income countries, there is limited research to guide selection of anti-tobacco mass media campaigns in low and middle income countries, although some work suggests that messages emphasizing serious health harms perform better than other message types. This study aimed to determine whether certain types of anti-smoking advertisements are more likely to be accepted and perceived as effective across smokers in 10 low to middle income countries. 2399 18–34 year old smokers were recruited in Bangladesh, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Philippines, Russia, Turkey and Vietnam to view and rate 10 anti-tobacco ads. Five ads were shown in all countries and five ads were chosen by country representatives, providing a total of 37 anti-smoking ads across all countries (10 graphic health effects ads, 6 simulated health effects, 8 emotional stories of health effects, 7 other health effects and 6 non-health effects). Smokers rated ads on a series of 5-point scales containing aggregated measures of Message Acceptance and Perceived Effectiveness. All ads and materials were translated into the local language of the testing regions. In multivariate analysis, graphic health effects ads were most likely to be accepted and perceived as effective, followed by simulated health effects ads, health effects stories, other health effects ads, and then non-health effects ads. Interaction analyses indicated that graphic health effects ads were less likely to differ in acceptance or perceived effectiveness across countries, gender, age, education, parental status and amount smoked, and were less likely to be affected by cultural differences between characters and contexts in ads and those within each country. Ads that did not emphasize the health effects of smoking were most prone to inconsistent impact across countries and population subgroups. Graphic ads about the negative health effects of smoking may be most suitable for wide population broadcast in low and middle income countries.     

Smoking Status Matters: A Direct Comparison of Smokers’ and Nonsmokers’ Psychophysiological and Self-Report Responses to Secondhand Smoke Anti-Tobacco PSAs

ABSTRACT

Extensive research demonstrates that exposure to threatening anti-tobacco messages can lead to defensive message processing which reduces message effectiveness. However, research investigating whether this effect is moderated by the smoking status of the message viewer is lacking. In this study, participants (N = 48 smokers and N = 51 non-smokers) viewed and rated secondhand smoke anti-tobacco messages depicting both smoking cues and threat content, or messages depicting neither while heart rate, skin conductance, and facial EMG were recorded. Post viewing, self-reported emotional experience, level of counterarguing, and recognition memory were measured. In support of the LC4MP, there were no differences between smokers and non-smokers’ responses for non-threatening messages absent in smoking cues. However, messages that contained both smoking cues and threat content were defensively processed by smokers – but not non-smokers – as indicated by significantly faster heart rate, lower recognition memory and higher self-reported negativity, arousal, and counterarguments. The theoretical and practical implications are discussed.     

Adolescents' responses to anti-tobacco advertising: exploring the role of adolescents' smoking status and advertisement theme

Anti-smoking media directed at adolescents use many different message themes, but little evidence exists as to which is most effective. Additionally, little is known about how teens who smoke respond to anti-tobacco ads. This study examined smoking and nonsmoking adolescents' responses to three popular thematic approaches: (1) endangering others, (2) negative life circumstances, and (3) industry manipulation. Sixteen groups of high school students (total N=488) were randomly assigned in a balanced fashion to one of three anti-tobacco ad conditions or a control condition. Outcome variables included adolescents' immediate emotional and cognitive responses, and intentions to smoke. Adolescents exposed to negative life circumstances ads reported lower intentions to smoke than those exposed to control and industry manipulation ads. Additionally, adolescents' responses differed based on smoking status. Smokers liked the ads less and had fewer positive and more negative thoughts. Findings suggest a media campaign focusing on negative life circumstances can be an effective component of a tobacco control program aimed at adolescents. Mechanisms through which the negative life circumstances ads influence adolescents' intentions to smoke are discussed. Findings also suggest that smokers respond differently to anti-tobacco ads, and their responses need to be considered when developing effective anti-tobacco advertising campaigns.     

A Review of: Perloff,R. M. (2003). “The Dynamics of Persuasion: Communication and Attitudes in the 21st Century (2nd ed.)”

This experiment uses the limited capacity model of mediated message processing (LC3MP) to investigate the effects of production pacing and arousing content in radio public service announcements (PSAs) on the emotional and cognitive responses of college-age and tween (9–12-year-olds) participants. The LC3MP predicts that both arousing content and production pacing should increase emotional arousal, physiological arousal, cognitive effort, and encoding up to the point of cognitive overload after which cognitive effort and encoding should decrease. Results showed that, as expected, arousing content did increase emotional arousal and cognitive effort for both tweens and college students, though the effect was larger for college students. For production pacing, however, the results were less clear cut. First, it was found that for radio PSAs pacing increased arousal for calm messages only. Further, the effects of production pacing on cognitive effort were larger for tweens and were experienced primarily during the first 25 seconds of the message, while college students were less affected by production pacing, and those effects appeared in the last 25 seconds of the messages. Finally, none of the messages in this experiment resulted in cognitive overload—thus both production pacing and arousing content increased memory for both groups of participants.     

Antismoking advertisements for youths: an independent evaluation of health, counter-industry, and industry approaches

OBJECTIVES: We used a validated copy test method to examine the effectiveness of 8 types of antismoking advertisements representing health, counterindustry, and industry approaches. We tested the hypothesis that health ads about tobacco victims can lower most adolescents' intent to smoke if the ads elicit disgust and anti-industry feelings rather than fear. We hypothesized null effects for adolescents with conduct disorder because of their abnormally low empathy. METHODS: Ninth-grade students from 8 California public schools (n=1725) were randomly assigned to view 1 of 9 videotapes containing a TV show with ads that included either a set of antismoking ads or a set of control ads. Participants completed baseline measures assessing personality traits and postexposure measures assessing smoking intent, feelings, beliefs, and ad evaluations. RESULTS: Ads focusing on young victims suffering from serious tobacco-related diseases elicited disgust, enhanced anti-industry motivation, and reduced intent to smoke among all but conduct-disordered adolescents. Counterindustry and industry ads did not significantly lower smoking intention. CONCLUSIONS: Sponsors of tobacco use prevention ad campaigns should consider using ads showing tobacco-related disease and suffering, not just counterindustry ads. Ads should be copy tested before airing.     

Adolescents' Responses to Anti-tobacco Advertising: Exploring the Role of Adolescents' Smoking Status and Advertisement Theme

Anti-smoking media directed at adolescents use many different message themes, but little evidence exists as to which is most effective. Additionally, little is known about how teens who smoke respond to anti-tobacco ads. This study examined smoking and nonsmoking adolescents' responses to three popular thematic approaches: (1) endangering others, (2) negative life circumstances, and (3) industry manipulation. Sixteen groups of high school students (total N = 488) were randomly assigned in a balanced fashion to one of three anti-tobacco ad conditions or a control condition. Outcome variables included adolescents' immediate emotional and cognitive responses, and intentions to smoke. Adolescents exposed to negative life circumstances ads reported lower intentions to smoke than those exposed to control and industry manipulation ads. Additionally, adolescents' responses differed based on smoking status. Smokers liked the ads less and had fewer positive and more negative thoughts. Findings suggest a media campaign focusing on negative life circumstances can be an effective component of a tobacco control program aimed at adolescents. Mechanisms through which the negative life circumstances ads influence adolescents' intentions to smoke are discussed. Findings also suggest that smokers respond differently to anti-tobacco ads, and their responses need to be considered when developing effective anti-tobacco advertising campaigns.     

Processing messages about disease detection and health promotion behaviors: the effects of anxiety

A study was conducted to examine the effects of anxiety on the processing of messages that encourage the performance of disease detection and health promotion behaviors. It was hypothesized that under high-anxiety conditions messages about health promotion behaviors would be processed more than messages about disease detection behaviors and that this effect would reverse under lower levels of anxiety. To test this hypothesis, the participants were required to read information designed either to increase or to decrease anxiety about health. Following the anxiety manipulation, participants received a strong or weak message promoting the performance of either health promotion or disease detection behaviors. Then participants were required to indicate their attitudes about the behavior, their cognitive responses to the message, and their recall of the message. The results support the hypothesis.     

Effects of exposure of youths at risk for smoking to television advertising for nicotine replacement therapy and Zyban: an experimental study

Television advertising for nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) and Zyban exposes the entire population, including adolescents, to persuasive messages about these smoking-cessation products. There is a risk that adolescents exposed to the advertising might underestimate addictiveness or perceive an unintended message that it is easy to quit smoking. This is of concern because optimism about quitting is a major predictor of trial and progression to heavier smoking among youths. We randomly allocated 492 youths age 12 to 14 years to one of three viewing conditions in which they viewed either (a) 4 NRT ads, (b) 4 Zyban ads, or (c) 4 ads promoting nonpharmacologic cessation services, such as telephone quitlines. After viewing each ad twice, participants completed a 1-page rating form. After all ads had been viewed, youths completed a questionnaire that measured intentions to smoke in the future, perceived addictiveness of smoking, perceived risks and benefits of smoking, and perceived need for pharmaceutical products and services. There were no differences in the composition of groups by age, gender, or smoking uptake. Youths were more likely to agree that the NRT and Zyban ads, compared with the quitline ads, made it seem easy to quit smoking (p < .001). However, there were no systematic differences between groups in perceived addictiveness of smoking, intentions to smoke, or other outcomes. This study suggests that although ads for NRT and Zyban may create "face value" impressions that it is easier to quit, at least in an experimental context in which exposure to ads for telephone quitlines is equal, such appraisals do not undermine more enduring perceptions about smoking. Field research taking into account the relatively high volume of pharmaceutical cessation product advertising is needed.     

I Spy With My Little Eye: Cognitive Processing of Framed Physical Activity Messages

The primary purpose was to examine the relative cognitive processing of gain-framed versus loss-framed physical activity messages following exposure to health risk information. Guided by the Extended Parallel Process Model, the secondary purpose was to examine the relation between dwell time, message recall, and message-relevant thoughts, as well as perceived risk, personal relevance, and fear arousal. Baseline measures of perceived risk for inactivity-related disease and health problems were administered to 77 undergraduate students. Participants read population-specific health risk information while wearing a head-mounted eye tracker, which measured dwell time on message content. Perceived risk was then reassessed. Next, participants read PA messages while the eye tracker measured dwell time on message content. Immediately following message exposure, recall, thought-listing, fear arousal, and personal relevance were measured. Dwell time on gain-framed messages was significantly greater than loss-framed messages. However, message recall and thought-listing did not differ by message frame. Dwell time was not significantly related to recall or thought-listing. Consistent with the Extended Parallel Process Model, fear arousal was significantly related to recall, thought-listing, and personal relevance. In conclusion, gain-framed messages may evoke greater dwell time than loss-famed messages. However, dwell time alone may be insufficient for evoking further cognitive processing.     

What makes an ad a cigarette ad? Commercial tobacco imagery in the lesbian,gay, and bisexual press

OBJECTIVES: To determine the extent of commercial tobacco imagery in the lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) press. METHODS: Content analysis of all advertising containing tobacco related text or imagery in 20 LGB community periodicals, published between January 1990 and December 2000. RESULTS: 3428 ads were found: 689 tobacco product ads, 1607 ads for cessation products or services, 99 ads with a political message about tobacco, and 1033 non-tobacco ads that showed tobacco (NAST). Although cessation ads were numerically dominant, tobacco product ads and NAST occupied more space and were more likely to use images. NAST almost never had an anti-tobacco message. Formal sponsorship between tobacco and other companies was very rare. Lesbian periodicals had proportionally more NAST and fewer cessation ads. CONCLUSIONS: Cigarette ads were outnumbered by NAST. Although these ads do not usually show brands, and are unlikely to be the result of formal sponsorship agreements, they may be "selling" smoking. Tobacco control advocates should persuade editors to refuse tobacco product ads and those with gratuitous tobacco imagery.     

Processing radio PSAs: production pacing, arousing content, and age

This experiment uses the limited capacity model of mediated message processing (LC3MP) to investigate the effects of production pacing and arousing content in radio public service announcements (PSAs) on the emotional and cognitive responses of college-age and tween (9-12-year-olds) participants. The LC3MP predicts that both arousing content and production pacing should increase emotional arousal, physiological arousal, cognitive effort, and encoding up to the point of cognitive overload after which cognitive effort and encoding should decrease. Results showed that, as expected, arousing content did increase emotional arousal and cognitive effort for both tweens and college students, though the effect was larger for college students. For production pacing, however, the results were less clear cut. First, it was found that for radio PSAs pacing increased arousal for calm messages only. Further, the effects of production pacing on cognitive effort were larger for tweens and were experienced primarily during the first 25 seconds of the message, while college students were less affected by production pacing, and those effects appeared in the last 25 seconds of the messages. Finally, none of the messages in this experiment resulted in cognitive overload - thus both production pacing and arousing content increased memory for both groups of participants.     

Antitobacco Media Awareness of Rural Youth Compared to Suburban and Urban Youth in Indiana

PURPOSE: This study examined the awareness and impact of antitobacco media messages among rural, suburban, and urban youth. METHOD: Self-administered questionnaires were received from 1,622, 1,059, and 1,177 middle school (sixth, seventh, and eighth grade) students in rural, suburban, and urban locations, respectively. Logistic regression compared media awareness and impact among the groups, controlling for grade, gender, race, and smoking behavior. RESULTS: Compared to rural youth, suburban youth were more likely to recall media messages about the dangerous health effects of tobacco use (odds ratio [OR] = 1.94) and have their personal choice to use tobacco affected by the messages (OR = 1.85). Suburban and urban youth more often recalled antitobacco messages (OR = 2.00 and 2.15), reported that the messages made them think about the dangers of tobacco use (OR = 2.02 and 1.47), believed that these ads prevent youth from initiating tobacco use (OR = 3.21 and 1.46) and stop youth from using tobacco (OR = 2.25 and 1.47), and recalled seeing specific campaign television ads (OR = 3.72 and 3.57). Urban youth were more likely to recall specific campaign messages on the radio (OR = 1.58). Neither suburban nor urban youth differed from the rural youth on whether the campaign-specific radio and television ads made them think about not using tobacco. CONCLUSIONS: The results support the need for targeting antitobacco media announcements to youth, based on their residence.     

“When Diet and Exercise Are Not Enough”: An Examination of Lifestyle Change Inefficacy Claims in Direct-to-Consumer Advertising

Previous research suggests that direct-to-consumer (DTC) advertisements for pharmaceutical drugs have the potential to influence consumers’ perceptions of whether symptoms should be treated medically and/or through behavior change. However, the relative frequency of messages emphasizing these approaches in pharmaceutical advertising remains largely unknown. A content analysis of print and television advertisements for cholesterol management medication between 1994 and 2005 (for print) and between 1999 and 2007 (for television) was conducted. First, the extent to which established theoretical constructs drawn from health communication scholarship are depicted in the content of DTC cholesterol advertisements is quantified. Second, specific claims about behavior change inefficacy when a pharmaceutical alternative is available are identified. Findings indicate that DTC ads offer many mixed messages about the efficacy of diet and exercise in reducing cholesterol and risk of heart disease. Theoretical and practical implications of this work are discussed.     

Testing the theoretical design of a health risk message: reexamining the major tenets of the extended parallel process model.

This study examined the fear control/danger control responses that are predicted by the Extended Parallel Process Model (EPPM). In a campaign designed to inform college students about the symptoms and dangers of meningitis, participants were given either a high-threat/no-efficacy or high-efficacy/no-threat health risk message, thus testing the extreme assumptions of the EPPM. Although the study supports the main predictions of the EPPM in the context of meningitis, the results provide new evidence that only a marginal amount of threat is necessary in a health risk message to move the target audience toward the desired protective measures. In addition, the results also suggest that the messages containing only threat may only scare the target audience further into fear control. Implications and future research are discussed.     

The Effectiveness of Gateway Communications in Anti-Marijuana Campaigns

Successful anti-marijuana messages can be hypothesized to have two types of effects, namely persuasion effects, that is, a change in people's beliefs about using marijuana, and priming effects, that is, a strengthened correlation between beliefs and associated variables such as attitude and intention. This study examined different sets of anti-drug advertisements for persuasion and priming effects. The ads targeted the belief that marijuana is a gateway to stronger drugs, a belief that is often endorsed by campaign planning officials and health educators. A sample of 418 middle and high school students was randomly assigned to a control video or one of three series of ads, two of which included the gateway message in either an explicit or implicit way. Results did not support the use of the gateway belief in anti-marijuana interventions. Whereas no clear persuasion or priming effects were found for any of the ad sequences, there is some possibility that an explicit gateway argument may actually boomerang. In comparison to the control condition, adolescents in the explicit gateway condition tended to agree less with the gateway message and displayed weaker correlations between anti-marijuana beliefs and their attitude toward marijuana use. The results suggest that the gateway message should not be used in anti-drug interventions.