Health Communication最新文献

This study used an exploratory sequential mixed-methods design to investigate the dual-pathway mechanisms influencing cancer screening decisions among family caregivers of cancer patients. A dual-pathway model was developed through qualitative interviews (N = 20) and subsequently validated with quantitative surveys (N = 705). Key findings revealed two distinct pathways. The cognitive pathway showed that caregiving experience promoted screening intentions by enhancing information literacy self-efficacy via health information acquisition. In contrast, the affective pathway indicated that fear of cancer progression predicted greater emotional exhaustion, which in turn suppressed screening decisions. Furthermore, interaction between the two pathways was identified: information literacy self-efficacy buffered the negative impact of emotional exhaustion on screening decisions (β = -.18, p < .01), while emotional exhaustion attenuated the positive effect of information literacy self-efficacy (β = -.15, p < .05). These results reveal the interplay between cognitive and affective units, providing a theoretical foundation for designing dual-pathway ("cognitive empowerment-affective regulation") intervention.

Misleading marketing practices and ethically ambiguous persuasion techniques have shaped consumer perceptions of breast-milk substitutes (BMS), despite the well-documented health benefits of breastfeeding. A recent evaluation of BMS producers' marketing activities in the Czech Republic and their compliance with the International Code of Marketing of Breast-Milk Substitutes by World Health Organization revealed widespread use of "grey-zone" tactics on social media and in product reviews. Our findings suggest that influencer and nano-influencer marketing and word-of-mouth product testing should be included in monitoring and regulation due to their growing role in peer-to-peer recommendations. Unlike traditional advertising, where commercial intent is clear, digital marketing relies on embedded persuasion, blurring the line between organic consumer recommendations and paid promotions. These tactics contribute to declining breastfeeding rates and raise concerns about transparency, consumer protection, and regulatory oversight. Existing policies, including WHO guidelines, have yet to adapt to the evolving digital marketing landscape, enabling companies to bypass traditional restrictions. To address these challenges, policymakers should establish clear disclosure requirements, stricter penalties for noncompliance, and AI-driven monitoring systems to track undisclosed promotional activities. Strengthening regulatory frameworks is essential to combat misinformation and uphold breastfeeding as the optimal infant feeding method.

Breast cancer is the most common cause of cancer death in Hispanic or Latino (H/L) women in the United States. However, researchers often fail to use recruitment messaging targeted toward increasing Latina participation in medical research. Although the barriers preventing Latinas' participation in research are well-established, there are few studies focused on comprehending the motivations of Latinas who previously volunteered for clinical trial participation. The current study aims to identify constructs for creating a theoretical framework exploring H/L women's motivations to provide healthy breast tissue for a breast cancer clinical trial. Guided by constructivist grounded theory, 19 women (n = 19) who self-identified as Hispanic or Latina and had previously donated healthy breast tissue to a biobank were interviewed regarding their medical research participation decision. The findings center on two primary themes: a) participants demonstrate confidence and self-efficacy in deciding to participate; possible negative feedback from family members was not a part of their decision-making process; and b) the importance of H/L women's awareness of low representation in medical research and the presence and influence of the legacy norm as a decision driver. The implications centered on a) understanding that H/L women have a strong sense of self-efficacy and should be viewed as important family healthcare decision-makers when creating clinical trial recruitment materials and b) a need for researchers to communicate to potentially unaware H/L women that they are being sought out because of their historical underrepresentation in research, and c) targeting constructs of the legacy norm and applying H/L cultural values (such as collectivism) as motivators to participate in medical research when creating recruitment messaging for H/L women.

Humor in public service announcements (PSAs) can reassure the audience, influencing the public's adoption of directives when managing crises of public health significance. However, the relevance of different humor types in public health emergencies, which are marked by uncertainty and change, remains largely uncharted. Through the lens of three humor theories, this study explored how humor was applied to advertise public health crisis directives on social media during the COVID-19 pandemic. A sample of high-engagement humor-containing COVID-19 PSAs from the World Health Organization (WHO) and Australian health departments' Facebook, Twitter (now X), and YouTube accounts was extracted. Through content analysis, we identified seven humor types employed by the organizations to promote 12 crisis directives. WHO's PSAs were based mainly on multiple humor mechanisms (76.5%), while Australian health departments' PSAs were more contingent on single humor mechanisms (60.2%). A high level of media richness accounted for social media user engagement, which persisted after repeated exposure to the same PSA. Prosocial content was more instrumental in generating high user engagement than self-focused posts. Through temporal analysis, we found that the PSAs were more frequent during periods of minimal direct public health impact of the crisis and when multiple humor types were employed. Our study demonstrates that a range of humor types could be applicable in generating public engagement across multiple phases of a public health crisis. The findings offer theoretical and practical insights to health authorities and practitioners seeking to promote crisis directives and influence health behaviors.

To address inconclusive prior research, we conduct a comprehensive evaluation and systematic review of humor appeals' usefulness in health communication on message processing, attitudinal, and behavioral outcomes. Specifically, we investigate previously examined boundary conditions and intervening processes. Following PRISMA guidelines, this systematic review examines the state of knowledge based on 48 eligible articles presenting 62 experimental studies that manipulate humorous message appeals. We find that humor appeals influence attitudinal and behavioral message outcomes but caution against their use with certain audiences (e.g., youth and parents), severe or high-risk health conditions, or conditions that affect vulnerable populations. In addition, fear arousal, anxiety, argument strength, and reactance intervene in humor appeals' relationships with message processing and persuasion outcomes in health communication campaigns. Findings identify some advantages of humor appeals for public health message design strategies. First, humor appeals appear particularly useful among audiences who lack the motivation or ability to process health messages. Second, humor appeals help defuse emotional distress related to health conditions or treatments.

This study used the theory of communicative (dis)enfranchisement to examine the functions, consequences, and responses associated with memorable messages that romantic partners receive regarding women's reproductive health conditions. We collected data from 74 couples who recalled a message that other people have said to them about their own or their partner's reproductive health conditions. Using thematic co-occurrence analysis, we identified a total of four functions of disenfranchising talk experienced by women and their partners, including discrediting, validating, silencing, and stereotyping. We identified three consequences of talk, including emotional, perceptual, and relational, as well as one behavioral response to such talk (e.g., disengagement from the healthcare system). In addition, we identified two patterns of co-occurrence within individuals (e.g., discrediting messages co-occurred with emotional consequences) and one pattern of co-occurrence between partners (i.e., affected participants' discrediting messages co-occurred with partners' discrediting messages). The discussion highlights the value of using a dyadic approach to understand the impact of communicative (dis)enfranchisement on couples navigating reproductive health conditions.

Antibiotic resistance is an urgent global health crisis that requires effective communication strategies to encourage public engagement in preventive behaviors. The current study explores the impact of multimodal design features, including threat agency (human vs. bacteria), nominalized forms (antibiotic misuse vs. antibiotic misuser), and color cues (blue vs. red) in health communication messages about antibiotic resistance. A 2 × 2 × 2 between-subjects experimental design was employed with a sample of 386 participants randomly assigned to one of eight conditions. Results indicated that messages assigning agency to humans led to greater perceived freedom threat compared to assigning bacteria as the agent. The interaction effects between threat agency and nominalized forms predicted perceived response efficacy and self-efficacy. The interaction between threat agency and color cues predicted intention to engage in antibiotic misuse. Additionally, the combination of nominalized forms and color cues predicted negative emotional reactions toward the fact sheet. The key takeaways from the study are that linguistic and sensory features often interact with each other to shape people's health beliefs, and it is important to understand how to strategically present (or mask) human involvement when humans are a primary cause of the health threat. The study's implications, limitations, and future research directions are discussed.

Existing research on misinformation often focuses on messages that are completely false. For greater external validity, our experiment examines reactions to messages that contain both false and accurate information. Using a framework of uncertainty attributes of truth claims, we examine perceptions of how acceptable error is when the source is (perceived to be) human-only, generative artificial intelligence-only, or a combination of the two. We examine the acceptability of perceived error and harms associated with the message and its topic, and how they interact as predictors of intentions to engage with the message or intervene.

Previous research has largely focused on whether restrictive mediation reduces online time or addiction risks, ignoring adolescents' resistance and its psychological outcomes. Considering adolescents' agency in their socialization process, this study explores whether restrictive mediation shields them from depression by limiting entertaining-oriented Internet use (EIU) or inadvertently exacerbates depression by triggering resistance to parental control (RPC), either directly or indirectly through increased EIU. Using data from 7,965 Chinese adolescents and employing structural equation modeling, the study found that more frequent restrictions were associated with reduced EIU, which in turn predicted lower levels of depression. However, frequent restrictions also triggered RPC, which directly increased depression and led to greater engagement in restricted activities, thereby offsetting the intended protective effects of restrictions. Moreover, the study examined varying restriction styles (i.e. how parents implement restrictions) and revealed that their impact on depression depended on both the implementation style and adolescents' responses.

Research into end-of-life (EOL) communication has mostly been conducted in Anglophone countries and intensive care settings. In areas where the value of family determination prevails and significant cancer mortality rates, such as China, there remains a necessity for scholarly exploration of how EOL information about late-stage cancer diagnosis and prognosis is communicated when patients have a normal level of consciousness. Drawing on the concept of collective boundary coordination from communication privacy management (CPM) theory, this study employs semi-structured in-depth interviews to explore physicians' strategies for disclosing late-stage cancer in China's general hospitals. Reflexive thematic analysis of the data collected from seven attending physicians and nurses, 13 medical interns, and 11 family members of late-stage cancer patients demonstrates another management pattern of patient privacy and a group of flexible strategies for collective boundary coordination. These findings have implications for the development of CPM and EOL communication in China and other cultures that prioritize family determination.