Kathleen Beullens

Measuring mobile phone use: Gender, age and real usage level in relation to the accuracy and validity of self-reported mobile phone use

This article reports the results of a mobile phone use validation survey in which we compared self-reported mobile phone use to network provider data, and examined the observed discrepancies between both data sources in a convenience sample of 466 Flemish mobile phone users (18–65 years). The results showed significant discrepancies between self-reported and behavioral mobile phone use, particularly for the number and duration of mobile calls. Light users tended to overestimate, while heavy users tended to underestimate their mobile phone use. Females were more likely to underestimate their weekly number of calls. Younger adults were more accurate in reporting their weekly number of calls, but less accurate in reporting their weekly number of text messages. The discussion devotes particular attention to potential question wording effects that are likely to have influenced the results.

Television and music video exposure and adolescent 'alcopop' use

Alcohol abuse among adolescents is a cause for concern. Around 1995 alcopops (sweetened alcoholic drinks) entered the scene and caused even more concern. Many fear that the sweet taste makes is easier to start drinking for those not yet used to drinking alcohol and the marketing appears aimed at adolescents. Because alcohol use has been linked to television viewing in general and music video viewing in particular this article examined whether a relationship existed between television and music video exposure and the consumption of alcopops. Data were collected with a questionnaire focused on television exposure and alcohol behavior. Respondents were a random sample of 2,546 first- and fourth year schoolchildren of Flanders, the Dutch speaking region of Belgium (60% of the Belgian population). Self reported general TV viewing, music video exposure and drinking of alcopops at home and/or while going out were measured. 68.4% of the respondents watched music videos at least several times a week. The odds of being an alcopop drinker at home increased by 196% for those, who watched music videos at least several times a week (OR = 1.961). For each additional hour of TV viewed per day, the respondents were 17% more likely to be drinkers of altopops at home (OR = 1.169). The odds of being an alcopop drinker, when going out increased by 239% for those who watched music videos at least several times a week (OR = 2.394). For each additional hour of TV viewed per day, the respondents were 19% more likely to be drinkers of alcopops when going out (OR = 1.186). These findings suggest that there is an association between music video exposure and use of alcopops not explained by overall exposure to television. This relationship merits further attention as it is a better predictor of alcopop use, than the control variables and overall TV viewing.

Television viewing and adolescent females' body dissatisfaction : the mediating role of opposite sex expectations

Abstract This study explored the relationship between both overall television viewing and romantic youth drama viewing, as well as of females’ concerns about boys’ attractiveness expectations on the one hand, and body image dissatisfaction on the other. Participants were 411 adolescent girls (ages 14 – 16) who completed self-report measures on body dissatisfaction, television viewing, and concerns about appearance expectations. Our results indicated that there was both a direct and indirect relationship between romantic youth drama viewing and body satisfaction. Girls who spent more time watching romantic youth drama displayed lower levels of body satisfaction. In addition, romantic youth drama viewing had a significant positive impact on concerns about boys’ attractiveness expectations, which had an indirect effect on body satisfaction.

Music Video Viewing as a Marker of Driving After the Consumption of Alcohol

This study has two main objectives. First, it is examined whether the frequent exposure to music video viewing is associated with driving after the consumption of alcohol. Second, it is examined which theoretical framework, a combination of Cultivation Theory and the Theory of Planned Behavior or the Problem Behavior Theory, is suited best to explain this relationship. Participants were 426 Flemish adolescents who took part in a two-wave panel survey (2006–2008) about media use, risk-taking attitudes, intentions, and behaviors. In line with Cultivation Theory and the Theory of Planned Behavior, the results showed that adolescents’ music video viewing is a significant marker of later risky driving behavior and that this relationship is mediated through their attitudes and intentions. No support was found for the hypothesis that music video viewing is part of a cluster of problem behaviors (Problem Behavior Theory). Thus, the results of this study seem to indicate that a combination of Cultivation Theory and the Theory of Planned Behavior provides a more useful framework for explaining the relationship between music video viewing and driving after the consumption of alcohol. The implications for prevention and the studys limitations are discussed.

Fear of cancer is associated with cancer information seeking, scanning and avoiding: a cross-sectional study among cancer diagnosed and non-diagnosed individuals.

BACKGROUND Nowadays, there is an abundance of health and cancer information in the mass media. Because of this high amount of information, it is possible for individuals to find or incidentally encounter cancer information, but it is also possible to be overloaded by this information and, consequently, to avoid it. Previous studies have indicated that fear of cancer could be both positively and negatively related to behaviours such as screening, help-seeking and information avoidance. OBJECTIVE The aims of this study were (1) to assess the relationship between fear of cancer and cancer information acquisition and avoiding behaviour, (2) to examine whether this relationship was curvilinear, and (3) to determine whether this relationship was moderated by being diagnosed with cancer or not. METHOD Six hundred and twenty-one cancer diagnosed and 1387 non-diagnosed individuals were recruited through a convenience sample in Flanders (Belgium) and filled in a standardised survey questionnaire. RESULTS The results showed a positive linear association between fear of cancer and information seeking, scanning and avoiding. Being diagnosed with cancer or not did not moderate this relationship. CONCLUSION Fear of cancer is positively associated with cancer information acquisition and avoiding behaviour. This suggests that fear of cancer predicts different behaviours in different individuals.

Television news' coverage of motor-vehicle crashes.

PROBLEM Traffic crashes are a major cause of injury and death. Although it has been argued that a skewed estimation of personal risks may be partly attributable to news representations of mortality causes, the manners in which traffic crashes are covered in the news have not received much attention in the literature. METHOD The current study used content analysis to examine the framing of traffic crashes in television news. RESULTS The data indicated that Flemish television news does not report traffic crashes from a public health perspective and consequently it misses opportunities to inform the public on the causes and consequences of risk-taking in traffic. IMPACT ON INDUSTRY It is important that professionals are aware of these findings and stress contextual factors surrounding traffic crashes in their communication with journalists. This may lead to more accurate reports and a more accurate risk perception of viewers.

The Association between Social Networking Sites and Alcohol Abuse among Belgian Adolescents: The Role of Attitudes and Social Norms

Both consuming alcohol and using social networking sites (SNS) are popular pastimes among adolescents. The current cross-sectional study (N = 3,133) aims to explore the relation between being exposed to and displaying alcohol-related content on SNS with alcohol abuse among adolescents aged 16–20 years. First, the results support that displaying alcohol-related content on SNS is more strongly associated with alcohol abuse than exposure to this kind of content. Furthermore, the associations of both exposure to and displaying alcohol-related content on SNS with alcohol abuse are mediated through perceived social norms of friends and attitudes toward excessive alcohol consumption. Yet, whereas alcohol-related attitudes and social norms seemed to be equally important mediators in the relation between exposure to alcohol-related content on SNS and alcohol abuse, the association between displaying alcohol-related content on SNS and alcohol abuse seemed to be mediated predominantly through a change in alcohol-related attitudes. Overall, this study sheds more light on the complex relations between SNS use and risky drinking behavior among adolescents.

Parent–child conflict about children’s tablet use: The role of parental mediation

This study examined the relations of children’s tablet use and parents’ mediation of children’s tablet use with parent–child conflict about such use. A sample of 364 parents of children aged 2–10 years was used to investigate the relations. The results showed that children who spent more time using the tablet had more conflicts with their parents. Also, children who received high amounts of restrictive mediation had more conflicts with their parents about the tablet. Children who often co-used the tablet with their parents had less conflict, however. Significant two-way interactions indicated that while restrictive mediation increased the strength of the relationship between tablet use and conflict, co-use decreased the strength of the relationship.

Use of Fitness and Nutrition Apps: Associations With Body Mass Index, Snacking, and Drinking Habits in Adolescents

Background Efforts to improve snacking and drinking habits are needed to promote a healthy body mass index (BMI) in adolescents. Although commercial fitness and nutrition mobile phone apps are widely used, little is known regarding their potential to improve health behaviors, especially in adolescents. In addition, evidence on the mechanisms through which such fitness and nutrition apps influence behavior is lacking. Objectives This study assessed whether the use of commercial fitness or nutrition apps was associated with a lower BMI and healthier snacking and drinking habits in adolescents. Additionally, it explored if perceived behavioral control to eat healthy; attitudes to eat healthy for the good taste of healthy foods, for overall health or for appearance; social norm on healthy eating and social support to eat healthy mediated the associations between the frequency of use of fitness or nutrition apps and BMI, the healthy snack, and beverage ratio. Methods Cross-sectional self-reported data on snack and beverage consumption, healthy eating determinants, and fitness and nutrition app use of adolescents (N=889; mean age 14.7 years, SD 0.8; 54.8% [481/878] boys; 18.1% [145/803] overweight) were collected in a representative sample of 20 schools in Flanders, Belgium. Height and weight were measured by the researchers. The healthy snack ratio and the healthy beverage ratio were calculated as follows: gram healthy snacks or beverages/(gram healthy snacks or beverages+gram unhealthy snacks or beverages)×100. Multilevel regression and structural equation modeling were used to analyze the proposed associations and to explore multiple mediation. Results A total of 27.6% (245/889) of the adolescents used fitness, nutrition apps or both. Frequency of using nutrition apps was positively associated with a higher healthy beverage ratio (b=2.96 [1.11], P=.008) and a higher body mass index z-scores (zBMI; b=0.13 [0.05], P=.008. A significant interaction was found between the frequency of using nutrition and for the zBMI (b=−0.03 [0.02], P=.04) and the healthy snack ratio (b=−0.84 [0.37], P=.03). Attitude to eat healthy for appearance mediated both the fitness app use frequency-zBMI (a × b=0.02 [0.01], P=.02) and the nutrition app use frequency-zBMI (a × b=0.04 [0.01], P=.001) associations. No mediation was observed for the associations between the frequency of use of fitness or nutrition apps and the healthy snack or beverage ratio. Conclusions Commercial fitness and nutrition apps show some association with healthier eating behaviors and BMI in adolescents. However, effective behavior change techniques should be included to affect key determinants of healthy eating.

Using a gamified monitoring app to change adolescents’ snack intake: the development of the REWARD app and evaluation design

BackgroundAs the snacking pattern of European adolescents is of great concern, effective interventions are necessary. Till now health promotion efforts in children and adolescents have had only limited success in changing adolescents’ eating patterns and anthropometrics. Therefore, the present study proposes an innovative approach to influence dietary behaviors in youth based on new insights on effective behavior change strategies and attractive intervention channels to engage adolescents. This article describes the rationale, the development, and evaluation design of the ‘Snack Track School’ app. The aim of the app is to improve the snacking patterns of Flemish 14- to 16-year olds.MethodsThe development of the app was informed by the systematic, stepwise, iterative, and collaborative principles of the Intervention Mapping protocol. A four week mHealth intervention was developed based on the dual-system model with behavioral change strategies targeting both the reflective (i.e., active learning, advance organizers, mere exposure, goal-setting, monitoring, and feedback) and automatic processes (i.e., rewards and positive reinforcement). This intervention will be evaluated via a controlled pre-post design in Flemish schools among 1400 adolescents.DiscussionWhen this intervention including strategies focused on both the reflective and automatic pathway proves to be effective, it will offer a new scientifically-based vision, guidelines and practical tools for public health and health promotion (i.e., incorporation of learning theories in intervention programs).Trial registrationNCT02622165 registrated November 15, 2015 on clinicaltrials.gov.