Public Knowledge and Credibility Perceptions of the FDA as a Tobacco Regulator

Schmidt, Allison M.; Jarman, Kristen L.; Ranney, Leah M.; Queen, Tara L.; Noar, Seth M.; Ruel, Laura; Agans, Robert; Hannan, Anika; Goldstein, Adam O.

doi:10.1093/ntr/ntx215

Cited by 11 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…Moreover, information on the FDA’s regulatory roles also resulted in a higher perceived knowledge of what the FDA does. Previous research has shown that the knowledge of FDA roles in regulating tobacco is strongly associated with perceived credibility of the organization [ 11 ]. Knowledge also plays a role in persuasion and can influence attitude change even in the absence of actual change in information or knowledge [ 25 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Information to Improve Public Perceptions of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA’s) Tobacco Regulatory Role

Osman

Kowitt

Sheeran

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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While the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has had regulatory authority over tobacco products since 2009, public awareness of this authority remains limited. This research examines several broad types of information about FDA tobacco regulatory mission that may improve the perceptions of FDA as a tobacco regulator. Using Amazon Mechanical Turk, 1766 adults, smokers and non-smokers, were randomly assigned to view a statement about FDA regulatory authority that varied three information types in a 2 × 2 × 2 between subjects experimental design: (1) FDA’s roles in regulating tobacco (yes/no); (2) The scientific basis of regulations (yes/no); and (3) A potential protective function of regulations (yes/no). Using factorial ANOVA, we estimated the main and interactive effects of all three types of information and of smoking status on the perceptions of FDA. Participants that were exposed to information on FDA roles reported higher FDA credibility and a greater perceived knowledge of FDA than those who did not. Exposure to information about the scientific basis of regulations led to more negative views of the tobacco industry. Participants who learned of the FDA’s commitment to protecting the public reported higher FDA credibility and more positive attitudes toward regulations than those who did not learn of this commitment. We observed no significant interaction effects. The findings suggest that providing information about the regulatory roles and protective characterization of the FDA’s tobacco regulatory mission positively influence public perceptions of FDA and tobacco regulations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A more recent study by Kowitt et al, (2017) found that only 43% of US adults reported trust in the federal government and that trust in FDA was moderate (62%) but lower than trust in the CDC (65%) [ 5 ]. Research also shows low public awareness of FDA’s tobacco regulatory and communication roles [ 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Information to Improve Public Perceptions of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA’s) Tobacco Regulatory Role

Osman

Kowitt

Sheeran

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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“…27 However, FDA has reduced the visibility of the FDA logo and focused on branding their campaigns with The Real Cost , This Free Life , Fresh Empire , and more recently Every Try Counts . Yet, FDA is perceived as moderately credible as a tobacco regulator, 28 with 95% name recognition among adults in the US. 29 Given their credibility as an agency and high name recognition, more prominent FDA source attribution may improve campaigns by increasing the credibility of the campaign messages.…”

Section: Fda Source and Credibilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Do Smokers Recall Source or Quitline on Cigarette Constituent Messages?

Jarman¹,

Kowitt²,

Queen³

et al. 2018

tobacco reg sci

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Objectives: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is required under the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act to communicate the risks of tobacco use to the public. Little research exists about methods to communicate the constituents of tobacco in a media campaign. This research examines specific strategies to increase effectiveness of a media campaign for cigarette smoking adults about tobacco constituents by including engagement text about smoking cessation and FDA as the source of the campaign. Methods: In an eye tracking study of 211 current cigarette smokers, participants randomly viewed 4 cigarette constituent messages that varied engagement text for quitting (benefits of quitting and quitline number, presence, absence) and by FDA source (presence, absence). After the eye tracking session, participants were asked about recall of the national quitline number and the source of message. Results: Participants in conditions with engagement text were significantly more likely than those in the no engagement conditions to recall the national quitline number. Few participants saw or recalled the FDA source. Conclusions: Engagement text for smoking cessation on constituent communication campaign messages significantly increases recall of the quitline, an important resource for smokers.

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“…8-11 In a focus group study with 41 US adults (24% self-identified as Black), Jarman et al 8 found that most participants were unaware of the FDA’s authority to regulate tobacco and expressed only partial trust in the FDA. Additionally, in a nationally representative survey of 4758 US adults (19.6% self-identified as Black), Schmidt et al 10 found that credibility perceptions of the FDA were higher among white respondents as compared to Black respondents.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whereas the trust gap indicated by the Schmidt et al study is not surprising, it does highlight the need for additional studies to describe the specific sources of distrust and to identify promising pathways for improving the perceived trustworthiness of the FDA among Black Americans. 10 Therefore, we conducted a qualitative study in Los Angeles, California, among Black community stakeholders employed in local organizations servicing a predominantly Black clientele. For the purpose of this paper, Black community stakeholders are defined as those with a vested interest or personal stake in activities that affect Black Americans residing in Los Angeles.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

"Who's Really Regulating? Who's Benefiting?" Exploring Black Stakeholders' Awareness and Trust in the Food and Drug Administration's Role as a Tobacco Regulator

et al. 2018

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Objective: Blacks/African Americans have experienced direct public health harm from US governmental agencies (eg, police violence, Tuskegee syphilis experiment) that may influence perceptions of the trustworthiness of government messages regarding tobacco products. Consequently, we sought to explore Black Americans’ awareness of and trust in the FDA’s role as a tobacco regulator. Methods: Data were from 2 focus groups conducted with a purposive sample of 23 Black stakeholders in Los Angeles, California. Discussions were audio-recorded and transcribed verbatim for analysis. Results: Although most (N = 14; 61%) participants were aware of the FDA’s role as a tobacco regulator, they all noted that the Black community in Los Angeles is not aware. Recurrent across the focus groups were discussions about distrust in the FDA with 4 main contributing factors: (1) that the FDA is influenced by the tobacco, agricultural, and pharmaceutical industries; (2) that the FDA is influenced by money and politics; (3) that the FDA is a bureaucracy exercising monopoly and power; and (4) that the FDA lacks technical capacity and competence to regulate tobacco products. Conclusions: Study findings highlight opportunities for the FDA to increase awareness and build trust in their tobacco regulatory role through communication campaigns targeted at Black Americans, and community engagement with Black stakeholders.

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Public Knowledge and Credibility Perceptions of the FDA as a Tobacco Regulator

Cited by 11 publications

References 14 publications

Information to Improve Public Perceptions of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA’s) Tobacco Regulatory Role

Information to Improve Public Perceptions of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA’s) Tobacco Regulatory Role

Do Smokers Recall Source or Quitline on Cigarette Constituent Messages?

"Who's Really Regulating? Who's Benefiting?" Exploring Black Stakeholders' Awareness and Trust in the Food and Drug Administration's Role as a Tobacco Regulator

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