Development of a smoking prevention mass media program using diagnostic and formative research

Prev Med. 1988 Sep;17(5):531-58. doi: 10.1016/0091-7435(88)90051-5.

Abstract

The process of developing a mass media campaign to prevent smoking among adolescents is described in detail. This campaign supplements a school smoking prevention program and shares educational objectives with the school program but is otherwise independent. It comprises various television and radio 30- and 60-sec "spot" messages. The campaign development process includes identifying educational objectives and strategies for appealing to young people; conducting diagnostic surveys and focus groups to determine target audience interests and perceptions about smoking and media content; suggesting approaches to producers to create preliminary television and radio messages for testing; conducting formative pretests with target groups to select optimal messages and suggest improvements to those messages; producing final messages for media presentation; and developing a media exposure plan to place messages in local media at optimal times for reception by target audiences. The media campaign is being evaluated in a 5-year project with 5,500 adolescents in four communities to determine the additional effect of mass media over a school program alone in preventing smoking.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Child
  • Female
  • Health Education / methods*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mass Media*
  • Radio
  • School Health Services
  • Smoking Prevention*
  • Television
  • United States