Content analysis of disease awareness advertisements in popular Australian women's magazines

Abstract

Objective: To examine the nature of disease awareness advertising (DAA). Design: Therapeutic advertisements in six popular Australian women's magazines were monitored between April 2006 and March 2007. A subset of advertisements was included in the study based on criteria derived from a definition of DAA. Unique advertisements were analysed by four independent coders. Main outcome measures: Types of advertisements and their sponsors, the types of disease information present, and the persuasive techniques utilised. Results: Of 711 advertisements identified, 60 met the inclusion criteria for DAA, and 30 of these were unique. Over one‐third of the advertisements were classified as “unbranded product advertisements”, which promote a product without referring directly to a brand. DAA sponsored by pharmaceutical companies most often provided treatment and prevalence information. Most (22/30) advertisements used emotional appeals; 15 of these used “happiness/healthiness/wellbeing”. Conclusions: The educational value of industry‐sponsored DAA could be improved if regulations and guidelines stipulated disease information requirements, such as inclusion of risk‐factor and symptom information. Regulators should provide guidelines for “unbranded product advertisements” and the acceptability of other persuasive techniques. Further research into DAA is required and should consider advertisements in a range of media, and behavioural responses.

Compliance of Disease Awareness Campaigns in Printed Dutch Media with National and International Regulatory Guidelines

“…Our results seem to indicate that pharmaceutical companies often opt to reach a wider audience by publishing their unbranded product advertisements in free media outlets, most notably in dedicated health-supplements. The frequency of occurrence of disease awareness campaigns observed in our study is consistent with the results of an Australian study, where a total of sixty campaigns were identified in popular women's magazines over eleven months [22]. From these, fifteen contained a corporate brand or logo – a result also similar to ours.…”

Direct to consumer advertising versus disease awareness advertising: consumer perspectives from down under

“…Despite the limited literature on consumers' responses to DAA, there is some evidence that this advertising increases awareness of the advertised health conditions and prescriptions of the sponsor's product (Basara, 1996; t'Jong et al ., 2004). A recent content analysis examined the prevalence of DAA in top circulating Australian women's magazines and concluded it constituted approximately 12% of all therapeutic advertisements (Hall et al ., 2009); this finding suggests its potential exposure is at least moderate.…”

Dementia: opportunities for risk reduction and early detection in general practice

“…The waiting room pamphlet was shown to improve dementia risk reduction knowledge further. This informative pamphlet may counteract the deficit shown in standard waiting room material with a survey of women's magazines in Australia between 2006 and 2007 revealing no mention of dementia (Hall et al 2009). The use of relevant health information in GP waiting rooms, especially a free pamphlet that can be downloaded from the Alzheimer's Australia website, can assist patient health literacy.…”