ArticleAddictive behaviors2019
From Apple to Werewolf: A content analysis of marketing for e-liquids on Instagram.
Article in Addictive behaviors, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 59 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
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.
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Who cites it
59 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- #TurntTrending: a systematic review of substance use portrayals on social media platforms.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2023Pooled it
- Youth use of e-liquid flavours-a systematic review exploring patterns of use of e-liquid flavours and associations with continued vaping, tobacco smoking uptake or cessation.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2022Pooled it
- Sharing Antivaping Social Media Messages.The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine · 2025Trial
- The effect of branded versus standardized e-cigarette packaging and device designs: an experimental study of youth interest in vaping products.Public health · 2024Trial
- Scrolling into substance use: Social media use frequency and substance use among U.S. high school students.Drug and alcohol dependence reports · 2026Article
- FDA authorisation of Zyn nicotine pouches: cross-sectional analysis of public discourse on X.Tobacco control · 2026Article
- Causal effect estimates of online e-cigarette marketing exposure on future e-cigarette harm perception and use.Drug and alcohol dependence reports · 2026Article
- Bidirectional Associations Between Engagement with Tobacco Information on Social Media and Young Adults' Depressive Symptoms: A Longitudinal Cross-Lagged Analysis.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Exposure to Vape Products Elicits Neural Activity Patterns Indicative of Approach Motivation Among Young People.Addiction biology · 2026Article
- Impact of flavorants on nicotine vapor self-administration in adolescent mice: Cherry on top?The Journal of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics · 2025Article
- E-Cigarette Narratives of User-Generated Posts on Xiaohongshu in China: Content Analysis.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- The impact of e-cigarette product characteristics on attitudes and use susceptibility: an experimental study.Health promotion international · 2025Article
- Association of fully branded, standardized packaging and limited flavor and brand descriptors of e-liquids with interest in trying products among youths in Great Britain.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2025Article
- Mobile phone ownership, social media use, and substance use at ages 11-13 in the ABCD study.Addictive behaviors · 2025Article
- Vape store density and proximity to schools in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia.Tobacco control · 2024Article
- Article
- Navigating the Modern Landscape of Social Media: Ethical Considerations for Research With Adolescents and Young Adults.Translational issues in psychological science · 2024Article
- Does sensation-seeking behavior influence the patterns of flavored e-cigarette use? A cross-sectional study among Indonesian adolescents and young adults.BMC public health · 2024Article
- Scalable Surveillance of E-Cigarette Products on Instagram and TikTok Using Computer Vision.Nicotine & tobacco research : official journal of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco · 2024Article
- Themes in e-liquid concept names as a marketing tactic: evidence from Premarket Tobacco Product Applications in the USA.Tobacco control · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
Abstract
introductionWith the growing popularity of refillable e-cigarettes and recent FDA regulatory action on e-liquid warning labels, e-liquids are an increasingly important area of study. At present, however, little is known about how e-liquids are marketed. This study examined e-liquid marketing on the visual social media platform Instagram, on which users have created significant amounts of e-cigarette related content.
methodsA systematic, random sample of Instagram posts with either #eliquid or #ejuice was collected from the Instagram API during one week in May 2017 and in October 2017 using the Netlytic application. A final sample of 1000 posts was analyzed using qualitative content analysis to discern e-liquid themes, claims, promotions, and products promoted.
resultsOf the 1000 posts, 61.1% promoted e-liquid. These posts were most frequently made by vape shops and ambassadors/representatives. Almost 80% of promotional posts featured a flavored e-liquid. Posts focused largely on e-liquids tasting good (35.4%) or being cool/edgy (19.0%). Many posts made use of Instagram's visual nature to share creative label designs. Just over a third of posts made some claim about e-liquid benefits or quality, with smokeless tobacco claims being most common. Although posts most commonly originated from the United States, posts made from Indonesia and the United Kingdom were also common.
conclusionsE-liquid marketing on Instagram emphasizes positive experiences, personalization, and aspirational identities rather than explicit health and cessation claims. Appeal to youth is a significant concern based both on marketing strategies and the demographics of Instagram users.
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Registered trials
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.