Ratings of the Effectiveness of Warnings on Consumer Paint Stripper Products

Abstract

Accidental inhalation of vapors from paint stripper products containing methylene chloride has resulted in injuries and deaths. Warnings on paint stripper products may play a role in reducing the number and severity of injuries resulting from using them. Warning labels consistent with Federal Hazardous Substances Act (FHSA) and American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Z535.4 formatting were evaluated by 159 university students and by 173 Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk) workers. Results indicated that both groups rated the ANSI-formatted warnings as more effective (more likely to be noticed, read, understood, and followed) than the FHSA-formatted warnings, providing support for both use of crowdsourcing as a reliable and valid source for study participants to evaluate warnings, as well as for updating FHSA labeling requirements to include evidence-based guidelines on warning effectiveness. Implications for future research are discussed.