A Survey of the Public Perception of Chiropractic After Exposure to Chiropractic Public Place Marketing Events in New Zealand

Abstract

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to assess public perception of chiropractic public place marketing events.MethodA chiropractic public place marketing program was held at 3 events (a community sports event, an exposition, and a university campus market day) over a 5-month period in Auckland, New Zealand, between 2008 and 2009. Participants were interviewed by chiropractic students. Interview questions were standardized and sought to find out participants’ perception of chiropractic and whether it was influenced in a positive or negative manner after their exposure to the marketing program.ResultsThree hundred forty-five interviews were completed during 3 events. The minority of participants (15.9%) had a negative view of chiropractic, 29.2% were neutral, and 54.9% had a positive view of chiropractic. Of the responses of those surveyed, 54% did not change their opinion of chiropractic, 44.3% were more positive, and 1.7% were more negative.ConclusionsThis study found that direct or indirect exposure to chiropractic public place marketing events may possibly influence the public perception of chiropractic. Because of the limited sample, these findings cannot be extrapolated to other regions or populations. Further studies are needed to test these findings in other world regions and in more controlled environments.

Community awareness of speech pathology: A regional perspective

“…For example, an Australian study on public perception of physiotherapy reported that while the public knew that physiotherapists work with musculoskeletal conditions, they had very little awareness that physiotherapists work with children or other services available within the discipline's scope of practice 16 . Though limited, studies on public awareness across speech pathology, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, audiology, podiatry and chiropractic all highlight the need for educational campaigns to promote the full range of services offered by these allied health professions 7‐25 …”

“…Although studies on the public perception of physiotherapy report a high level of general awareness of the profession, all reported limited knowledge of the range of services that physiotherapists can provide 12‐16 . Studies assessing public awareness of occupational therapy, 17‐20 chiropractic care 21‐23 and audiology 24 all highlight the need to improve public awareness of the services these professions provide. Despite the study on podiatry reporting that the general public is familiar with podiatric services, it needs to be viewed with caution as it is the only published study on public awareness of podiatry 25 …”