Adherence Promotion With Tailored Motivational Messages: Proof of Concept and Message Preferences in Older Adults.

This study examined the feasibility of using tailored text messages to promote adherence to longitudinal protocols and determined what facets of text message tone influence motivation. Forty-three older adults (Mage = 73.21, SD = 5.37) were recruited to engage in video-game-based cognitive training for 10 consecutive days. Participants received encouraging text messages each morning that matched their highest or lowest ranking reasons for participating in the study, after which they rated how effective each message was in motivating them to play the games that day. After 10 days, participants rated all possible messages and participated in semi-structured interviews to elicit their preferences for these messages. Results showed that messages matching participants' reasons for participating were more motivating than mismatched messages. Further, participants preferred messages that were personalized (i.e., use second person voice) and in formal tones. Messages consistent with these preferences were also rated as more motivating. These findings establish the feasibility of using message tailoring to promote adherence to longitudinal protocols and the relevance of tailoring messages to be personal and formal.

Messages focused on the effect of alcohol on the immune system boosted intention to adhere to alcohol intake guidelines during Covid-19 lockdown.

Objective: Research shows that personal relevance may affect the impact of alcohol-related health information. This study explored alcohol consumption during the UK Covid-19 lockdown, and whether a message emphasising the effect of alcohol on the immune system was more effective in altering intentions to follow low-risk drinking guidelines than other messages about the effects of alcohol on health.Methods & Measures: From April to June 2020, 953 drinkers completed an online questionnaire, and were randomly allocated to exposure to a control condition or one of three messages emphasising the impact of alcohol on: the immune system; mental health; or physical health. Outcome variables were: concern about alcohol intake, and intention to adhere to low-risk drinking guidelines.Results: Pre-post ANCOVAs revealed that participants in the immunity message group had significantly stronger intention to adhere to low-risk guidelines than the control group (after controlling for initial intention). Concern for the effect of alcohol on health was not significantly affected.Conclusion: During Covid-19 lockdown, a message emphasising the impact of alcohol on the immune-system had a greater effect on intention to observe low-risk drinking guidelines than other messages. Contextually relevant messages could be used for alcohol health campaigns and for improving alcohol labelling.

Framing and Tailoring Prefactual Messages to Reduce Red Meat Consumption: Predicting Effects Through a Psychology-Based Graphical Causal Model.

Effective recommendations on healthy food choice need to be personalized and sent out on a large scale. In this paper, we present a model of automatic message selection tailored on the characteristics of the recipient and focused on the reduction of red meat consumption. This model is obtained through the collaboration between social psychologists and artificial intelligence experts. Starting from selected psychosocial models on food choices and the framing effects of recommendation messages, we involved a sample of Italian participants in an experiment in which they: (a) filled out a first questionnaire, which was aimed at detecting the psychosocial antecedents of the intention to eat red/processed meat; (b) read messages differing as to the framing of the hypothetical consequences of reducing (gain, non-loss) versus not reducing (non-gain, loss) red/processed meat consumption; (c) filled out a second questionnaire, which was aimed at detecting participants' reaction to the messages, as well as any changes in their intention to consume red/processed meat. Data collected were then employed to learn both the structure and the parameters of a Graphical Causal Model (GCM) based on a Dynamic Bayesian Network (DBN), aimed to predicting the potential effects of message delivery from the observation of the psychosocial antecedents. Such probabilistic predictor is intended as the basis for developing automated interactions strategies using Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) techniques. Discussion focuses on how to develop automatic interaction strategies able to foster mindful eating, thanks to (a) considering the psychosocial characteristics of the people involved; (b) sending messages tailored on these characteristics; (c) adapting interaction strategies according to people's reactions.

Online Behavioral Screener with Tailored Obesity Prevention Messages: Application to a Pediatric Clinical Setting.

Obesity prevention involves promoting healthy eating and physical activity across all children. Can we leverage technology to feasibly survey children's health behaviors and deliver theory-based and user-tailored messages for brief clinical encounters? We assessed the acceptability and utility of an online pediatric-adapted liking survey (PALS) and tailored messages among children receiving non-urgent care in a pediatric emergency department (PED). Two hundred and forty-five children (average age = 10 years, racially/ethnically diverse, 34% overweight/obese from measured indices, 25% of families reporting food insecurity) and their parents/caregivers participated. Each reported the child's activity and behaviors using the online PALS and received two to three messages tailored to the responses (aligned with elaboration likelihood and transtheoretical models) to motivate behavioral improvements or reinforce healthy behaviors. Most children and parents (>90%) agreed the PALS was easy to complete, encouraging thought about their own/child's behaviors. The child's PALS responses appeared reasonable (fair-to-good child-parent intraclass correlations). Most children and parents (≥75%) reported the tailored messages to be helpful and favorable for improving or maintaining the targeted behavior. Neither message type (motivating/reinforcing) nor favorability responses varied significantly by the child's weight or family's food security status. In summary, children and parents found the PALS with tailored messages acceptable and useful. The message types and responses could help focus brief clinical encounters.

Young adults' preferences for influenza vaccination campaign messages: Implications for COVID-19 vaccine intervention design and development.

BACKGROUND: Health campaign interventions, particularly those tailored to the target audience's needs and preferences, can cost-effectively change people's attitudes and behaviors towards better health decision-making. However, there is limited research on how to best tailor seasonal influenza vaccination campaigns for young adults. Vaccination is vital in protecting young adults and their social circles (vulnerable populations like older adults) from the influenza virus and critical in shaping these emerging adults' vaccination habits in the long run. However, amid the prevalence of easily-accessible, attention-grabbing, and often malicious false and misinformation (e.g., COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy theories), it may be more challenging to develop vaccination messages that resonate with young adults well enough to attract their attention. Therefore, to bridge the research gap, this study examines young adults' preferences for seasonal influenza vaccination campaigns to inform effective intervention design and development. METHODS: Qualitative survey questions were developed to gauge young adults' preferences for seasonal influenza vaccination campaigns. A total of 545 young adults (73.9% female, Mage â€‹= â€‹19.89, SD â€‹= â€‹1.44) from a large University offered complete answers to a cross-sectional online survey. Braun and Clarke's thematic analysis procedures were adopted to guide the data analysis process. RESULTS: Thematic analysis revealed that young adults prefer seasonal influenza vaccination campaigns that rely on (1) quality and balanced information from (2) credible information sources, positioned in the (3) relevant health contexts, (4) emphasize actionable messages, and incorporate (5) persuasive campaign design. Interestingly, while many participants underscored the importance of fear-appeal messages in persuading them to take health actions, some young adults also suggested avoiding fear campaigns due to discomfort. CONCLUSIONS: Insights of the study can inform seasonal influenza vaccination design and development, and have the potential to shed light on vaccination messaging in other vaccine contexts, such as COVID-19 vaccines. Results also underscore the need for health experts and government officials to adopt a more nuanced approach when selecting persuasive campaign appeals. While some young adults may resonate well with fear appeals, others may not. Future research could examine the underlying mechanisms that drive young adults' preference for vaccination campaign intervention to enrich the literature further.

Efficacy of text messaging-based interventions for health promotion: a meta-analysis.

This meta-analysis investigated the efficacy of text messaging-based health promotion interventions. Nineteen randomized controlled trials conducted in 13 countries met inclusion criteria and were coded on a variety of participant, intervention, and methodological moderators. Meta-analytic procedures were used to compute and aggregate effect sizes. The overall weighted mean effect size representing the impact of these interventions on health outcomes was d = .329 (95% CI = .274, .385; p < .001). This effect size was statistically heterogeneous (Q18 = 55.60, p < .001, I(2) = 67.62), and several variables significantly moderated the effects of interventions. Smoking cessation and physical activity interventions were more successful than interventions targeting other health outcomes. Message tailoring and personalization were significantly associated with greater intervention efficacy. No significant differences were found between text-only interventions and interventions that included texting plus other components. Interventions that used an individualized or decreasing frequency of messages over the course of the intervention were more successful than interventions that used a fixed message frequency. We discuss implications of these results for health promotion interventions that use text messaging.