Introduction
Smoking is a significant contributor to the deterioration of public health since it has a negative impact not only on the health of smokers but also on the health of people who choose not to light up. Hence, anti-smoking efforts are essential to public health measures, which aim to reduce the prevalence of smoking and improve health outcomes. Fear appeals are utilized rather frequently in anti-smoking programs because the programs attempt to convince individuals to take action in the face of the possibility of harm (Simpson, 2017). This report will analyze the many different types of fear appeals that are used in health communication as well as their potential effectiveness. Additionally, it will provide the Irish government with ideas to implement in their fight to reduce the number of people smoking in the country.
Critical Review of Experimental Studies on Fear Appeal Message Strategy
Experimental Study 1
Summary
Colin and Droulers (2022) investigated whether using anger in anti-smoking messaging or combining both anger and horror in anti-smoking communications effectively prevented young people from taking up the habit. Two hundred and seventy teenage smokers participated in the study. They were randomly allocated to one of four groups: fear-only, anger-only, fear-and-anger combined, or a control condition (Colin & Droulers, 2022). The message’s perceived effectiveness, and the participants’ subsequent intentions to quit smoking, were evaluated. According to the study’s findings, the combination of fear and anger was the most effective regarding participants’ views of its effectiveness and their subsequent attempts to quit smoking (Colin & Droulers, 2022). This lends credence to the theory that anti-smoking advertising benefits more from a mixture of fear and anger than each emotion alone.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Due to its excellence in proving causal relationships between variables, this experimental design is widely regarded as the gold standard for research methods. This is because the experimental design was developed. The researchers were able to correctly measure the impact of the message type on the behavior of smokers by randomly assigning participants to different message groups. This allowed them to adjust for potential confounding variables, allowing them to assess the impact of smoking behavior more accurately. Utilizing a randomized controlled trial approach lends significant legitimacy to this study. There are various limitations to the study that should be considered. First, only 80 students from a French university participated in the study. As a result, the study’s conclusions may not apply to a wide range of groups and conditions. The viability of the intervention over a more extended period was not studied in this study; instead, the emphasis was primarily on the short-term effects of the various types of messages. Therefore, more research is needed to evaluate whether the intervention’s effects can be sustained over time.
Lessons Learned
This publication provides an essential contribution to the field of public health because of its randomized controlled trial design and ability to be implemented in the real world. According to the findings, anti-smoking advertising aimed at young people should include both anger and fear to be more effective in stopping them from establishing a smoking habit. While attempting to draw any form of conclusion from the study, it is critical to remember its limitations, such as its small sample size and the need for a more in-depth analysis over time. The findings of this investigation have significant policy and campaign implications for the Irish government, which can be used to reduce youth smoking.
Experimental Study 2
Protocol for creating new warnings on cigarette packs and evaluating their efficacy in a randomized experimental setting. The goal of this experiment is to develop improved and more efficient warning labels for cigarette packaging in hopes of reducing the number of people who smoke (Ben Lakhdar et al., 2020). The procedure consists of four fundamental parts, which are as follows: identifying the most significant information to communicate; developing the warning labels; performing a pilot study and carrying out a randomized controlled experiment. The findings of this study present a rigorous process for developing and evaluating new warning labels for cigarette packaging, which have been demonstrated to be effective in lowering smoking rates (Ben Lakhdar et al., 2020). With the help of the randomized controlled trial method, it is possible to conduct an in-depth analysis of the dependability of the warnings.
Strengths and Weaknesses
This experiment presents a rigorous framework for creating and testing new cigarette warning labels, one of the most powerful weapons now available for deterring individuals from beginning a smoking habit. Due to the randomized controlled trial methodology, the evaluation of warning labels may be done scientifically (Ben Lakhdar et al., 2020). Nevertheless, the design of the experiments does not consider any other intervention strategies other than placing warning labels on cigarette packages to reduce the number of people who smoke. It is also important to point out that the research was only carried out in Ireland; hence, the findings may not apply to countries where smoking is less prevalent than in Ireland.
Lessons Learned
The findings of this experimental investigation underscore the importance of doing comprehensive research utilizing randomized controlled trials to investigate evidence-based policy interventions to reduce smoking. Several different policy efforts might be required in Ireland depending on the level of smoking that is already prevalent there and the cultural mores surrounding tobacco use. Policymakers should explore several policy measures and modify them to their specific situation. One such project is the creation and testing of new warning labels for cigarette packaging, which can be an effective means of reducing smoking behavior.
Experimental Study 3
Summary
Using serious games for Antismoking Health Campaigns: Experimental Study. This paper discusses the findings of a controlled trial on the effectiveness of using serious games in health education programs to discourage smoking (Kim et al,2020). Anti-smoking initiatives that use serious games have the potential to reach and influence a larger demographic of young adults than traditional methods of communication (Kim et al,2020). Serious games can help people stop smoking by including information about the risks of smoking within the game and offering rapid feedback on the effects of smoking. Incorporating narrative and individualized feedback into the game increases its potential to inspire players to quit smoking. That is why governments should consider using serious games in their anti-smoking initiatives.
Strengths and Weaknesses
The investigation provides a novel viewpoint on health measures aimed at reducing the prevalence of smoking, which has the potential to be more engaging and fruitful than more traditional methods of attack. Due to the randomized controlled trial design, it is feasible to objectively evaluate the effectiveness of serious games in reducing the number of people who smoke. Since this study focused solely on young adults in South Korea, its findings may not apply to other nations or cultures (Kim et al,2020). One limitation is that a rather small sample size was used. Moreover, there was no research on the possible long-term impacts of serious games on smokers’ habits.
Lessons Learned
Governments should look into non-conventional strategies for promoting health and discouraging smoking. Randomized controlled trials are recommended for testing the efficacy of evidence-based policy measures to reduce smoking rates. Due to their distinct smoking cultures and habits, many communities may require varying policy approaches. Hence, the Irish government needs to consider the long-term implications of policy interventions on smoking habits and how to make those effects sustainable. Although serious games used in anti-smoking health efforts are beneficial, Ireland officials should consider whether the games will resonate with the country’s diverse population and cultural norms.
Experimental Study 4
Summary
How can e-cigarette fear appeals improve the perceived threat, fear, anger, and protection motivation of young people. This controlled experiment aims to investigate whether or not exposure to advertising for electronic cigarettes affects young people’s perception of threats, anxiety, anger, and motivation to take preventative measures (Sun et al., 2021). According to the findings, it is practical to use fear appeals to make young people feel intimidated, furious, and terrified of electronic cigarettes (Sun et al., 2021). The research also shows that young people’s protection motivation can be significantly boosted by employing fear appeals connected to electronic cigarettes, ultimately leading to a stronger intention to cease smoking traditional cigarettes.
Strengths and Weaknesses
The study’s findings show that appealing to young people’s sense of dread successfully influences their attitudes toward goods like e-cigarettes. Since the research employed a randomized controlled trial design and quantified the results using established scales, the findings should be highly credible (Sun et al., 2021). The study does not give any data on the long-term efficacy of such treatments; instead, it focuses primarily on the effects of fear appeals on young people regarding electronic cigarettes (Sun et al., 2021). In addition, the study did not consider the likelihood of unforeseen ramifications, such as an increase in anxious feelings or a decrease in a person’s sense of their ability to cope.
Lessons Learned
Officials in Ireland may choose to use fear appeals concerning e-cigarettes as part of their anti-smoking initiatives, particularly for the country’s youth. However, policymakers need to be sure that the fear-based arguments they use are supported by facts and will not result in unintended consequences. For policymakers to attain the goals for which their policies were designed, they should routinely evaluate and modify their policies while also keeping in mind the efficacy of such initiatives over the long run. In conclusion, governments should investigate the possibility of utilizing fear appeals over e-cigarettes as a strategy in constructing anti-smoking activities; nevertheless, its use should be appropriately planned and assessed before implementation.
Experimental Study 5
Summary
Through a series of message pre-tests, Zhao, Roditis, and Alexander (2019) investigated if the anti-smoking campaign “The Real Cost” was more successful when it provoked feelings of fear or laughter. Their goal was to determine which emotion was more effective. The authors recruited 1,401 smokers and ex-smokers between the ages of 18 and 24 from around the country to participate in an online experiment and survey (Zhao et al., 2019). During the experiment, participants were exposed to either a humorous appeal, a terror appeal, or controlled advertising intended to encourage them to quit smoking (Zhao et al., 2019). The fear appeal commercial was more effective than the control advertisement in terms of increasing participants’ perceived harm of smoking and their intentions to stop smoking.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Utilizing a large and representative sample of adolescent smokers contributed significantly to the study’s improved external validity. The study offered an essential contribution in that it pretested the advertisement so that changes could be made before the actual campaign began. One of the study’s flaws is its dependence on self-reported judgments of intention to stop smoking, which may or may not have been predictive of future behavior change (Zhao et al., 2019). Since only three advertisements were studied in the study, likely, the study did not completely represent the range of messaging alternatives that may be used in an anti-smoking campaign.
Lessons Learned
The findings of this research provide credence to the theory that is appealing to adolescent smokers’ sense of fear as a means of getting them to acknowledge the hazards of their habit can be an effective method of reducing the prevalence of teenage smoking. In addition, the government should evaluate the campaign’s efficacy by keeping a tally of the number of persons who consciously decide to quit smoking as a direct result of the campaign.
Conclusion
The government of Ireland ought to carefully craft messages suitable for their target audience and carefully consider the benefits and drawbacks of deploying fear appeals in its campaigns. Appealing to people’s sense of fear to persuade them to give up smoking is an effective tactic. When combined with other types of communication, it is important to use appeals that could cause anxiety in moderation and with prudence. Before formulating a strategy that will resonate with its intended audience, the Irish government would be well to evaluate the benefits and drawbacks of a variety of scare tactics before making any decisions.
References
Ben Lakhdar, C., Deplancke, A., Le Lec, F., Massin, S., Piermatteo, A., & Vaillant, N. (2020). Protocol for creating new warnings on cigarette packs and evaluating their efficacy in a randomised experimental setting. BMJ Open, 10(6). Web.
Colin, C., & Droulers, O. (2022). Effect of combining fear and anger in anti-smoking messages to discourage young smokers. Public Health, 211, 47–52. Web.
Kim, J., Song, H., Merrill Jr, K., Jung, Y., & Kwon, R. J. (2020). Using serious games for Antismoking Health Campaigns: Experimental Study. JMIR Serious Games, 8(4). Web.
Simpson, J. K. (2017). Appeal to fear in health care: Appropriate or inappropriate? Chiropractic & Manual Therapies, 25(1). Web.
Sun, C., Wang, F., & Jiang, M. (2021). How can e-cigarette fear appeals improve the perceived threat, fear, anger, and protection motivation of young people. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. Web.
Zhao, X., Roditis, M. L., & Alexander, T. N. (2019). Fear and humor appeal in “The real cost” campaign: Evidence of potential effectiveness in message pretesting. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 56(2). Web.