Traci Hong

Health information seeking, diet and physical activity: An empirical assessment by medium and critical demographics

PURPOSE Research over the past decade has conveyed a dramatic rise in health information seeking via the Internet and articulated various profiles and outcomes of health information seeking. In building upon this research, the current study is innovative in considering predictors of health information seeking by medium, as well as outcomes of health information seeking by medium and by critical demographics. METHODS OLS regression and logistic regression are conducted on data from a telephone survey of American adults in 2007 (N=700). RESULTS Profiles of health information seekers vary dramatically by medium (Internet versus newspapers versus television). In terms of outcomes, newspaper health information seeking is associated with fruit and vegetable consumption, while television health information seeking is associated with sweetened soft drink consumption. There are four significant interaction terms between these two health information seeking variables and unhealthy snack consumption. Internet health information seeking has no significant effects. CONCLUSIONS In comparison to the Internet, newspaper and television media have more favorable associations with recommended levels of lifestyle behaviors that may be critical in efforts to decrease obesity in the United States.

Examining the Role of Exposure to Incongruent Messages on the Effect of Message Framing in an Internet Health Search

This study examines the effects of exposure to messages incongruent with one’s motivational orientation. In a factorial design with regulatory orientation and message frame as independent variables, participants (N = 106) conducted an information search on a web program. Participants selected online information that was congruent with their activated motivational orientation. Compatibility effects resulted in promotion orientation/gain frame and prevention orientation/loss frame participants reporting more favorable attitudes than promotion orientation/loss frame and prevention orientation/gain frame participants irrespective of exposure to messages incongruent with the activated motivational orientation. A similar pattern of results occurred with message recall. For behavioral intention, significant differences occurred for only the promotion orientation condition where gain-framed messages elicited greater behavioral intentions than the loss-framed message.

A Panel Study of Peer Norms and Adolescent Alcohol Consumption: Developing Strategies for Communication Interventions

Given that alcohol consumption and binge drinking among adolescents in the United States remain prevalent, this study assesses changes in the influence of peer norms—and their interactions with time, gender, and ethnicity—on alcohol consumption. Panel survey interviews of adolescents (N = 1,607) were completed in 9th grade and then again in 12th grade with students from Louisiana. Fixed effects multiple regression assessed the relations between the changes in 2 types of peer norms (i.e., descriptive norms and injunctive norms) and 2 alcohol consumption measures: 30-day alcohol prevalence and binge drinking. Increases in 30-day alcohol prevalence and binge drinking were associated with only descriptive norms. The effects of both types of peer norms intensified over time, and the effects of descriptive norms varied according to gender and ethnicity. Specifically, the influence of descriptive norms was greater on boys than on girls and on Caucasians than on African Americans. Communication interventions that target adolescents in the context of alcohol consumption should consider the temporal variability of peer normative influence and how it varies by gender and ethnicity.

Internet health search: When process complements goals

This study examines how the goal orientation of individuals, rather than the goals of a search task, influences information search behavior for 2 discrete stages of the Internet search process. In an Internet-based experiment (N = 106) with temporarily activated motivational orientation (promotion vs. prevention) and message goal frames (gain vs. loss) as independent variables, it was demonstrated that participants selected information that was congruent with their motivational orientation although they did not necessarily spend more time attending to their selection. Participants with the promotion orientation exhibited more scanning behavior and viewed more web pages but spent less time on the Internet search. Congruency effects resulted in higher user engagement, which mediated the congruency effects on the perceived message quality of the health content.

Process Evaluation of an In-School Anti-Tobacco Media Campaign in Louisiana

Objectives. In light of challenges imposed by the changing media landscape and decreasing classroom time available for health interventions, new approaches are needed to disseminate anti-tobacco messages to adolescents. This study reported process evaluation of an in-school three-year anti-tobacco media campaign conducted in 10 schools in Louisiana. Methods. Over three years, 10 schools received an in-school anti-tobacco media campaign. The media campaign was one intervention component of the Acadiana Coalition of Teens against Tobacco. Campaign measures were tracked over the campaigns three-year duration. The campaign and evaluation were designed to target the students as they progressed through high school. The number of students who completed the surveys were 1,823 in Year 1, 1,552 in Year 2, and 1,390 in Year 3. Schools eligible for participation were publicly funded schools with no magnet or special populations and within a two-hour driving distance of the New Orleans study office. Results. In a self-report survey (Year 1, n=1,823; Year 2, n=1,552; Year 3, n=1,390), more than 75% and 50% of students reported being exposed to posters and public service announcements, respectively. Recognition of campaign theme was more than 80%. Almost half of respondents reported that the posters were interesting, one-third reported that the posters prevented them from smoking, and 10% reported that the posters encouraged them to cease smoking. Stock media posters had a significantly higher affective reaction than the customized media posters. Conclusion. Findings suggest that in-school media programs are useful and should be considered as a viable approach to health education for adolescents.

Protecting Oneself Online The Effects of Negative Privacy Experiences on Privacy Protective Behaviors

With a general basis in protection motivation theory, this study builds a three-stage model from online negative privacy experiences to online privacy protection motivation to online privacy protection behaviors. With 2013 survey data (N = 528), a well-fitting structural equation model was tested, indicating general support for the model’s progression. There was support in only one instance, however, for the mediation role of online privacy protection motivation. In that case, awareness of online information disclosure mediated the effects of information stolen on contact management. The other protection motivation—online privacy concerns—had stronger effects on the four online privacy protection behaviors.

A Behavioral Function Approach in Predicting Contribution of User-Generated Content

This study theoretically develops a three-stage model in which certain types of health behavior functions (i.e., health-affirming vs. health-detection/treatment) prime individuals to process information with either a defensive or accuracy motivation. Such information-processing motivations, in turn, are expected to influence the contribution and consumption of user-generated health content. The three-stage model was tested with data from an online sample of American adults (N = 767). A well-fitting structural equation model provided evidence for each of the hypothesized paths except for that from health-detection/treatment behavior to accuracy motivation. Individuals’ information search for health-affirming behaviors instigated a defensive motivation. Moreover, while both information-processing motivations influenced user-generated content consumption, only defensive motivation had a significant effect on user-generated content contribution. Finally, there was also one significant cross-stage path in which health-affirming behavior had a direct effect on content contribution, thus, overstepping defensive and accuracy motivations.