This Much Water: a qualitative study using behavioural theory to develop a community service video to prevent child drowning in Western Australia

Abstract

ObjectivesDrowning in children under the age of 5 is a frequently occurring, yet preventable event. This research used behavioural theory to test the suitability and appropriateness of a drowning prevention message in a community service video.DesignThis qualitative study used content analysis of focus groups. Constructs from the Health Belief Model guided the data analysis.SettingCommunity organisations and playgrounds in Perth, Western Australia.ParticipantsParticipants were parents or carers of at least one child under 5 years residing in Western Australia. Seven focus groups (n=57) were conducted with eight participants in each group. Most participants were parents (96%), female (95%), aged between 25 and 34 years (63%) and were born in Australia (68%).ResultsParticipants indicated the community service video was credible in communicating the message that young children were susceptible to drowning in shallow water and that various water hazards existed in and around the home. However, a range of external factors, such as the child's age, type of water hazard, presence of siblings and other environmental factors, influenced risk perceptions. Child drowning was seen as a serious issue. Controlling access to water and the role of supervision were understood to be important factors in preventing drowning.ConclusionsThe lack of published drowning prevention interventions shaped by behavioural theory limits the understanding of best practice. Using constructs from the Health Belief Model, this research confirmed the perceived seriousness, devastating and unforgettable consequence of drowning; however, findings were mixed regarding cues to action. Future development of drowning prevention media messages should test strategies to increase susceptibility and self-efficacy among the target group and explore the impact of different message senders. The findings provide a valuable understanding of possible messages and their execution for use in media campaigns, as one component of an effective public health intervention to prevent child drowning underpinned by behavioural theory.

Mapping the Landscape of Behavioral Theories: Systematic Literature Review

“…However, it is important to mention that these two approaches are in a spectrum rather than being dichotomic. The research studies that seem to employ a qualitative method often use statistical methods to analyze text or image-based data by coding words or features into categories (e.g., Denehy et al 2017; Prosman, Scholten, and Power 2016; Bellomo and Gibelli 2015). Similarly, the research studies that seem to use quantitative methods often include qualitative survey questions that are categorical or in the form of short answer, especially with regard to the questions related to “why” and “how” (e.g., Wolske, Stern, and Dietz 2017; Claudy, Peterson, and O’Driscoll 2013; Castanier, Deroche, and Woodman 2013).…”

“…With regard to the analysis method, regression was used most frequently (e.g., Dynarski and Scott-Clayton 2006) followed by correlation analysis (e.g., Wolske, Stern, and Dietz 2017), structural equation modeling, factor analysis (e.g., Yuen et al 2017), and path analysis (e.g., Van Riper and Kyle 2014). As for the sample size, publications had 100–499 samples the most, followed by 500–20,000, less than 100, and big data such as 104 weeks of transaction screening through simulation with an ambiguous unit of data (e.g., Martinez-Moyano 2008; Wolske, Stern, and Dietz 2017; Denehy et al 2017; Lapinski et al 2017). Of the 156 publications, the most frequently occurring theory was the theory of planned behavior (in 33 publications) followed by prospect theory (in 11 publications; Online Appendix B).…”

Development and validation of a health educational booklet

“…Managing drowning occurrences by training of CPR and water safety [7,8] iv. Influential messages to change behavior [26] v. Effective water safety content and approaches based on socio-cultural strategies [14] vi. Learning survival skills [27] Researcher utilized content analysis and extracted the main concept to be incorporated into the booklet.…”

Media reporting of summer drowning: A partial picture, useful for advocacy

“…This study showed that younger victim deaths were most likely to be reported in the media (with 100% of 0‐24 year old drowning deaths reported). This may be due to the emotive nature of child drowning and the work done by advocates to highlight the child drowning burden over many years . Increased reporting may also be due to the likelihood of the event being witnessed and the witness or first responder willing to provide content to media.…”