The Influence of Antismoking Television Advertisements on Cessation by Race/Ethnicity, Socioeconomic Status, and Mental Health Status

Abstract

Disparities in tobacco use and smoking cessation by race/ethnicity, education, income, and mental health status remain despite recent successes in reducing tobacco use. It is unclear to what extent media campaigns promote cessation within these population groups. This study aims to (1) assess whether exposure to antitobacco advertising is associated with making a quit attempt within a number of population subgroups, and (2) determine whether advertisement type differentialy affects cessation behavior across subgroups. We used data from the New York Adult Tobacco Survey (NY-ATS), a cross-sectional, random-digit-dial telephone survey of adults aged 18 or older in New York State conducted quarterly from 2003 through 2011 (N = 53,706). The sample for this study consists of 9,408 current smokers from the total NY-ATS sample. Regression methods were used to examine the effect of New York State’s antismoking advertising, overall and by advertisement type (graphic and/or emotional), on making a quit attempt in the past 12 months. Exposure to antismoking advertising was measured in two ways: gross rating points (a measure of potential exposure) and self-reported confirmed recall of advertisements. This study yields three important findings. First, antismoking advertising promotes quit attempts among racial/ethnic minority smokers and smokers of lower education and income. Second, advertising effectiveness is attributable in part to advertisements with strong graphic imagery or negative emotion. Third, smokers with poor mental health do not appear to benefit from exposure to antismoking advertising of any type. This study contributes to the evidence about how cessation media campaigns can be used most effectively to increase quit attempts within vulnerable subgroups. In particular, it suggests that a general campaign can promote cessation among a range of sociodemographic groups. More research is needed to understand what message strategies might work for those with poor mental health.

Perceived Effectiveness of Antismoking Ads and Association with Quit Attempts Among Smokers: Evidence from the Tips From Former Smokers Campaign

“…This study also provides further support for previous research showing that hard-hitting, general population antismoking media campaigns can be used to promote quit attempts across a variety of demographic subpopulations (McAfee et al, 2013(McAfee et al, , 2015Nonnemaker et al, 2014). Specifically, we found patterns in PE varied by race/ethnicity and mental health status, indicating that vulnerable populations report higher PE scores.…”

“…Previous research suggests that antismoking campaigns that target all smokers with "why to quit" messages may be equally or more effective among ethnic/racial minorities (Davis et al, 2011a;Durkin, Biener, & Wakefield, 2009;McAfee, Davis, Alexander, Pechacek, & Bunnell, 2013Nonnemaker et al, 2014). More recent evidence (McAfee et al, 2013(McAfee et al, , 2015 has shown that the Tips campaign likely had the greatest effects on quit attempts among non-Hispanic black smokers despite the campaign including an ethnically diverse group of ad participants.…”

Smoking Cessation Among Racial/Ethnic Minorities, 2010–2014

“…Of the studies that do include smokers from diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds, most do not include adequate representation from Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders, American Indians/Native Alaskans, Native Hawaiians [e.g., 10,29,32,41] or multiracial smokers [e.g., 10,29,32,33,41]. Moreover, consideration of race/ethnic differences including these groups is lacking [e.g., 30,42].…”

“…Five studies investigated racial/ethnic differences in quit attempts using survey methods. In a random-digit-dial telephone survey of Whites, African Americans, and Hispanics, Nonnemaker et al [32] found that potential antismoking advertisement exposure (measured by television gross rating points) was positively associated with quit attempts in Whites and Hispanics. Confirmed advertisement recall was positively related to quit attempts among Whites and African Americans, with the highest odds of making a quit attempt associated with emotional or graphic images.…”

E-cigarette Marketing and Older Smokers: Road to Renormalization

“…Disparities in tobacco use among adults continue to exist by race/ethnicity, education, income, and mental health status. 6 In the last decade, smoking prevalence has declined in all age groups in the US except for older smokers. In fact, smoking prevalence for adults over 65 actually has increased.…”