Educating outdoor workers using tailored and financial messages to encourage safe-sun behaviors

Abstract

Excessive and unsafe sun exposure represents a concerning hazard to the health of individuals. Of particular interest are those who are most susceptible to sun exposure, such as outdoor workers. The current study used a 3 × 2 between-subjects design to investigate the effectiveness of messages that varied the extent of personalization (i.e. generic message; occupation targeted message; individual tailored message) and the inclusion of content regarding financial consequences of skin cancer. Participants (N = 304) were recruited from the USA through Amazon’s Mechanical Turk and randomly assigned to view a generic message, occupation targeted message, or individual tailored message. Additionally, participants were randomly assigned to view messages in which financial information was either present or not. Participants responded to questions assessing pre- and post-test sun protection behaviors. Individual tailored messaging was as effective as occupation targeted messaging, with both being more effective than generic messaging. This finding indicates that some degree of personalization is necessary when promoting safe-sun practices to outdoor workers, but that tailoring to individuals may not always be necessary. Inclusion of financial content in messaging resulted in greater intentions to practice sun protection behaviors. Results provide insight into effective methods for promoting sun protection.