Evaluating the ParticipACTION “Think Again” Campaign

Abstract

Introduction ParticipACTION's 2011 "Think Again" campaign aimed to draw parents', and specifically mothers', attention to the amount of physical activity (PA) their children do relative to the national guidelines (physical activity guidelines [PAG]). Purpose To evaluate ParticipACTION's "Think Again" campaign in the context of the hierarchy of effects model. Methods Data were drawn from "Think Again" campaign evaluations conducted among two cohorts of parents with children ages 5 to 11 years (3 months postcampaign launch [T1], n = 702; 15 months postlaunch [T2], n = 670). Results At T2, campaign awareness was weakly associated with parents agreeing that their children were not active enough (p = .01, d = .18). Parents who were aware of the campaign showed greater knowledge of PAG (ps < .01, ϕs > .14), had higher outcome expectations about their children engaging in PA (p < .01, d = .16), had stronger intentions to help their child meet the guidelines (p < .01, d = .18), and engaged in more parental support behaviors (p < .001, d = .31) as compared with parents who were not aware. At T1, parents aware of the campaign had greater perceived behavioral control (PBC) to influence their child's PA participation (p < .01, d = .22), whereas parents not aware of the campaign had greater PBC to find practical ways to help their child be active (p < .01, d = .26). Parental awareness of the campaign was not associated with children meeting the PAG at either time point (ps > .05). Conclusions The campaign appeared marginally effective for increasing parental knowledge of PAG and for creating realistic awareness of children's PA levels. Additional intervention strategies are needed to produce larger effects and to change parental behavior.

Perceptions of organizational capacity to promote physical activity in Canada and ParticipACTION’s influence five years after its relaunch: a qualitative study

“…Some informants were simply unaware of what ParticipACTION had to offer. Although ParticipACTION has played a leading role in mass media campaigns for physical activity since relaunch, 21,22 another strategic priority was knowledge exchange with physical activ ity organizations. 23 It could be that ParticipACTION needs to make their core activities apparent to organizations by devoting more time to sharing knowledge products with the ParticipACTION Partner Network, and showcasing current activi ties that may enhance capacity to deliver physical activity programming.…”

Longitudinal associations of parental and peer influences with physical activity during adolescence: findings from the COMPASS study

“…While best practices for family-based PA interventions for youth remain to be identified, 42,43 limited evidence suggests that public health professionals could increase parental support for PA using parent-child targeted training, family counselling and preventive messages during family visits. 42 Social marketing campaigns (such as the ParticipACTION "Think Again" campaign) 44 may also have a role to play in educating parents about their important role in providing support.…”

Exploring the impact of the ‘new’ ParticipACTION: overview and introduction of the special issue

“…The overall impact of "Think Again" as a mass media campaign was examined by Gainforth and colleagues. 23 Guided again by the HOEM, this study focused on iden tifying the relationships with proximal (e.g. awareness of a campaign, beliefs about the behaviour, intentions to engage in the behaviour) and distal factors (e.g.…”