The impact of age-relevant and generic infographics on knowledge, attitudes and intention to attend cervical screening: A randomized controlled trial

Objectives

Cervical screening uptake in England is falling. Infographics could strengthen intention to attend, increase positive attitudes and improve knowledge. Age targeting could improve these outcomes further. We tested the impact of generic and age-targeted infographics.

Design

A randomized controlled trial using an age-stratified, parallel-group design.

Methods

Women aged 25–64 (n = 2095) were recruited through an online panel and randomized to see one of the three infographics. We tested: (i) impact of a generic cervical screening infographic compared to a control infographic on an unrelated topic with all screening age women and (ii) impact of an age-targeted infographic compared to a generic cervical screening infographic with older women (50–64 years). Intentions, knowledge and attitudes were measured.

Results

Women aged 25–64 years who viewed the generic infographic had significantly higher intentions [F(1, 1513) = 6.14, p = .013, ${\eta }_p^2$ = .004], more accurate beliefs about the timeline of cervical cancer development (OR: 5.18, 95% CI: 3.86–6.95), more accurate social norms (OR: 3.03, 95% CI: 2.38–3.87) and more positive beliefs about screening benefits (OR: 2.23, 95% CI: 1.52–3.28) than those viewing the control infographic. In the older age group, there was no significant difference in intention between those viewing the generic versus age-targeted versions [F(1, 607) = .03, p = .853, ${\eta }_p^2$ < .001], but the age-targeted version was more engaging [F(1, 608) = 9.41, p = .002, ${\eta }_p^2$ = .015].

Conclusions

A cervical screening infographic can result in more positive attitudes and better knowledge and may have a small impact on intentions. Although age targeting did not affect intention, it had a positive impact on engagement and may therefore be useful in encouraging women to read and process materials.