RU SURE? Using Communication Theory to Reduce Dangerous Drinking on a College Campus

PUBLIC COMMUNICATION CAMPAIGNS: Theoretical Principles and Practical Applications

“…This section briefly identifies the basic content of key books published since 2000:  Crano and Burgoon (2002) organized a series of theoretical perspectives and research studies focusing of the role of the media in drug abuse prevention  Cox (2006) focused on the role of media and public forums (scientists, lobbyists, corporations, advocacy groups, etc.) in shaping perceptions of the environment and actions relating to the environment  Edgar, Noar and Freimuth (2007) analyzed public and private communication about HIV/AIDS in the US and other countries  Hornik (2002) presented 16 major studies using various methods to investigate health communication programs in many nations  Klingermann and Roemmele ( 2002) packaged an array of chapters about public information campaigns in European countries, with an emphasis on practical applications  Kotler, et al (2002) discussed social marketing approaches to health promotion  Lederman and Stewart (2005) examined campaign strategies in the context of alcohol prevention programs  Moser and Dilling (2007) presented various perspectives on effective communication, public outreach and education influencing policy, collective action and behavior change related to climate change  Perloff (2003) described persuasion theories and applications relevant to campaign message design  Rice and Atkin (2001) assembled more than two dozen perspectives on public communication campaigns (this chapter summarizes main points of many of these)  Rice and Katz (2001) and Murero and Rice (2006) brought together a wide range of researchers who analyzed changes in health care, information seeking, and support associated with internet technologies  Singhal, et al (2004) traced the history and review international cases of the expanding practice of entertainment-education to promote health  Stiff and Mongeau (2003) provided an overview of theoretical models pertinent to persuasive strategies in communication campaigns  Thompson, Dorsey, Miller, and Parrott (2003) presented a comprehensive handbook featuring coverage of health campaigns  Thorogood and Coombes (2004) provided a tutorial on methods (qualitative and quantitative) for implementing and evaluating health promotion interventions  Tones and Green (2004) offered an international perspective on the complexities of health promotion strategies  Valente (2002) comprehensively explained the frameworks, theories, research designs, and analytical methods used to evaluate health promotion programs  Wilbur (2006) provided a tutorial on social marketing and then applies the principles to water-related environmental contexts.…”

“…For example, students' estimates of their peers' drinking behaviors are typically significantly higher than the peers' actual behaviors; these inaccurate social projections encourage students to engage in excessive drinking until campaigns such as the RU Sure? Project (Lederman, et al, 2001) provide accurate evidence from the individuals' own peer networks. Thus, perceived network influence is an important goal as well as mechanism of campaigns taking social network theory seriously.…”

Believing is Seeing

“…Although Plato created this allegory about 2,200 years before television and the Internet were invented, the similarities are eerie and describe the same phenomenon: Part of our nature is to take the information that is available to us (often failing to question its accuracy) and unconsciously synthesize it with what we already know so that we feel we have a sense of reality. In the case of college drinking, many students on college campuses reify these images through their selected perceptions of their socially situated learning experiences (Lederman et al, 2001;Lederman & Stewart, in press).…”