Improving health communication with photographic images that increase identification in three minority populations.

The homophily principle, that perceived similarities among people produce positive reactions, is a cross-cultural, global phenomenon. This study aimed to test the prediction that photographs that depict models similar to the target population improve health communication by increasing perceived identification in three racial/ethnic populations. Three separate nationally representative stratified samples (n = 1638) of African American, Hispanic and Native American adults were drawn from GfK's Knowledge Panel�. Participants read a message advocating increased physical activity and improved diets and completed measures on behavioral intentions, outcome and self-efficacy expectations and identification. The message contained photographs from a stock photograph service or photographs created for the research project to match the three minority populations, Real Health Photos (RHP). Structural equation modeling confirmed the theoretical hypothesis that RHP which matched the minority population increased behavioral intentions and was mediated by identification (P < 0.05) in all three racial/ethnic minority samples. Messages with only half of the matched RHP images had these same positive indirect effects among African Americans and Hispanics (P < 0.05). The impact of matching visual images in health messages to recipients derived from identification with the characters in images. Homophily and identification are hardwired, evolutionary, biological phenomena that should be capitalized on health educators with minority populations.

The cancer information service research consortium: an emerging laboratory for cancer control research.

The Cancer Information Service (CIS) was established in 1975 by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to provide accurate, up-to-date information about cancer to the nation. Although the CIS has in the past served as a venue for cancer communications research, up until very recently the research capacity of the CIS was underutilized. In 1993, this situation changed dramatically with funding from the NCI to form the Cancer Information Service Research Consortium (CISRC). In this article the CISRC is described for the first time, including its research agenda and administrative structure. Early indications from the CISRC suggest that the CIS can serve as one of the premiere laboratories in the country for cancer communications and cancer control research. Several factors are suggested for the early success of the CISRC in sustaining this collaborative effort with the CIS. The progress that has been made by the CISRC could provide a useful model for other large health information programs to maximize their contributions to behavioral science and health promotion research, as well as to establish their own program of policy-relevant research.

The first 15 years: what has been learned about the Cancer Information Service and the implications for the future.

The Cancer Information Service (CIS) has been in existence for over 15 years. During that period, lessons have been learned that have been used to increase the effectiveness of the network. This paper lists 12 of those lessons, covering issues such as giving sophisticated medical information; reaching diverse target audiences; using the mass media; developing systems needed for quality assurance, research, and information technology; and nurturing a local-national partnership. The paper also discusses major accomplishments of the program and lists recommendations for meeting the challenges to be faced by the CIS in the future.

Defining and targeting an audience for cancer-prevention messages.

The target audience for cancer-prevention messages is not the cancer patient. Cancer-prevention messages should be designed for and directed toward groups of people who have been determined to be at risk for the disease. Potential audiences may vary widely in size and nature, depending on the specific cancer, its cause, and its etiology. The prevention of specific disease, eg, lung cancer, typically demands some behavior on the part of the recipient of a cancer-prevention message. Thus, members of a target audience may be asked to stop smoking or to refrain from starting. Each potential target audience is likely to be unique and cannot always be reached with typical mass-media campaigns. Messages designed to be effective for such special audiences may be required if a significant impact on behavior is to be obtained. This article attempts to identify potential audiences for cancer-prevention messages and develops the nature of the media to be used, the sources to be employed, and the arguments to be developed in such a campaign. Characteristics (eg, sex, race, age, marital status, and socioeconomic status) are used as examples of variables that may dictate the nature of cancer-prevention campaigns.

Health promotion and the knowledge-attitude-behavior continuum.

Influencing health behavior through informational campaigns, followed by the expectation of attitude change and subsequent desired behavior changes, is examined. Prior literature in this area indicates that the correlations between information level and overt behavior or between attitude and overt behavior are generally positive though low. Two major approaches to improving the relationships between knowledge, attitude, and behavior are discussed: the approach taken by M. Fishbein and his associates, which argues for the use of measures of behavior intention rather than generalized attitudes, and the approach of W.J. McGuire and other proponents of an information-processing model, which argues that moving between the elements of the knowledge-attitude-behavior continuum demands processing time on the part of individuals and attention to a set of elements within a communication matrix. The five central elements of the communication process--source, message, channel, receiver, destination--and the independent variables involved are examined. The information-processing model is seen as particularly appropriate to health promotion campaigns and is recommended for further careful study in health promotion situations.

Donors and nondonors: communication and information.

Donors and nondonors from six states were surveyed to determine differences in: 1) socioeconomic and demographic characteristics, 2) knowledge about blood donation, 3) access to information about donating, and 4) motivation to donate. The findings indicate that the present donor pool consists largely of socioeconomically advancing young adults. There was little difference between donors' and nondonors' knowledge of the donating process and access to mass media-disseminated information about blood donation. Nondonors receive more information about donating from friends than do donors and interpersonal influence is an effective means of donor recruitment. The use of motivators other than humanitarianism may also be useful for inducing volunteer donations. Nondonors do lack knowledge about the location of local collection facilities. The present sample is socioeconomically and demographically representative of the U.S. adult population. As such, it provides information useful for developing effective donor recruitment strategies.