This project will assess the impact of a focused program of mass media messages on cigarette smoking behaviors of young people in grades 4-12. Theory-based educational messages addressing both prevention and cessation of cigarette smoking will be tailored to the needs of three audience segments defined by age, with further tailoring by gender, racial/ethnic identity, and risk of cigarette smoking as indicated by research conducted in Project 1. Messages 2will be delivered over television and radio media preferred by young people during Years 2-5. The study will be conducted in four states; in each state a matched pair of mass media markets will be selected, with one member of each randomly allocated to receive the intervention, while the other market serves as a comparison area. Lower-income areas selected within these metropolitan areas will include substantial proportions of African American, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic white populations. Summative surveys will be conducted with young people in grades 7-12 in these areas during Year 1, before interventions are initiated, and during Year 5, after completion of the interventions (n=24000). These surveys will assess cigarette smoking status and history, hypothesized mediators of cigarette behavior, exposure to interventions and exposure to other tobacco education efforts. Campaign monitoring surveys will be conducted with students in grades 4-12 in Years 2-4 (n=3840); other process evaluation activities will document school and community levels of prevention programming and concurrent tobacco control mediator efforts. This project will provide new information about the impact of a highly focused theory-based mass media program on tobacco use behaviors among important populations of young people.
| Flynn, Brian S; Worden, John K; Bunn, Janice Yanushka et al. (2011) Evaluation of smoking prevention television messages based on the elaboration likelihood model. Health Educ Res 26:976-87 |
| Flynn, Brian S; Worden, John K; Bunn, Janice Yanushka et al. (2010) Mass media interventions to reduce youth smoking prevalence. Am J Prev Med 39:53-62 |
| Solomon, Laura J; Bunn, Janice Y; Flynn, Brian S et al. (2009) Mass media for smoking cessation in adolescents. Health Educ Behav 36:642-59 |
| Flynn, Brian S; Worden, John K; Bunn, Janice Yanushka et al. (2007) Youth audience segmentation strategies for smoking-prevention mass media campaigns based on message appeal. Health Educ Behav 34:578-93 |
| Solomon, Laura J; Bunn, Janice Y; Pirie, Phyllis L et al. (2006) Self-efficacy and outcome expectations for quitting among adolescent smokers. Addict Behav 31:1122-32 |
