Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29636038›Full record

ArticleBMC public health2018

Severity and susceptibility: measuring the perceived effectiveness and believability of tobacco health warnings.

Olivia M Maynard, Harry Gove, Andrew L Skinner, Marcus R Munafò

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC public health, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
6citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

6 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Parental Perceptions of Children's Exposure to Tobacco Smoke and Parental Smoking Behaviour.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Olivia M MaynardMRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, School of Experimental Psychology, 12a Priory Road, Bristol, BS81TU, UK. olivia.maynard@bristol.ac.uk.ORCID 0000-0002-9048-6627
Harry GoveDepartment of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, BA27AY, UK.
Andrew L SkinnerMRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, School of Experimental Psychology, 12a Priory Road, Bristol, BS81TU, UK.
Marcus R MunafòMRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, School of Experimental Psychology, 12a Priory Road, Bristol, BS81TU, UK.

Funding

Cancer Research UK 19332Medical Research Council MC_UU_12013/6Medical Research Council MC_UU_12013/6; MC_UU_12013/7Medical Research Council MC_UU_12013/7Medical Research Council MR/K023195/1
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundPictorial tobacco health warning labels (HWLs) have been shown to be more effective than text-only HWLs in changing smoking attitudes and intentions. However, there is contradictory evidence regarding how the severity of the content of HWLs influences responses to them.

methodsWe examined the perceived believability and effectiveness of HWLs in an online study using a convenience sample of non-smokers (N = 437) and smokers (N = 436). HWLs were in one of three presentation formats: (text-only, a moderately severe image or highly severe image) and focussed on three disease outcomes (lung cancer, blindness or tooth and gum disease). Participants rated the effectiveness and believability of each HWL and also rated their perceived susceptibility to each disease.

resultsA 2 (smoking status) × 3 (presentation format) × 3 (disease outcome) ANOVA was run for both believability and effectiveness ratings. The most severe pictorial HWLs received the highest believability and effectiveness ratings and as expected, the text-only HWLs received the lowest. Lung cancer HWLs were rated most believable and effective, with the blindness HWLs receiving the lowest scores. A 2 (smoking status) × 3 (disease outcome) ANOVA was conducted on the ratings of perceived susceptibility to the three diseases. Smokers considered themselves to be more susceptible to all three diseases, and among smokers, perceived susceptibility to the diseases was positively correlated with effectiveness and believability ratings of the HWLs.

conclusionOur findings support previous evidence that pictorial HWLs are rated as more effective and believable than text-only warnings, and provide some support for the use of severe or 'grotesque' HWLs on tobacco products. Our data also suggest that HWLs should aim to increase perceived susceptibility to disease, as this was positively related to perceived message effectiveness and believability.

Indexed as

Health warningsPackaging and labellingPublic policySeveritySusceptibilityTobacco

Identifiers

PMID29636038
PMCPMC5894175

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.