Using eye-tracking to examine how embedding risk corrective statements improves cigarette risk beliefs: Implications for tobacco regulatory policy

Abstract

Background: Tobacco companies have deliberately used explicit and implicit misleading information in marketing campaigns. The aim of the current study was to experimentally investigate whether the editing of explicit and implicit content of a print advertisement improves smokers' risk beliefs and smokers' knowledge of explicit and implicit information.

Methods: Using a 2(explicit/implicit)×2(accurate/misleading) between-subject design, 203 smokers were randomly assigned to one of four advertisement conditions. The manipulation of graphic content was examined as an implicit factor to convey product harm. The inclusion of a text corrective in the body of the ad was defined as the manipulated explicit factor. Participants' eye movements and risk beliefs/recall were measured during and after ad exposure, respectively.

Results: Results indicate that exposure to a text corrective decreases false beliefs about the product (p<.01) and improves correct recall of information provided by the corrective (p<.05). Accurate graphic content did not alter the harmfulness of the product. Independent of condition, smokers who focused longer on the warning label made fewer false inferences about the product (p=.01) and were more likely to correctly recall the warning information (p<.01). Nonetheless, most smokers largely ignored the text warning.

Conclusions: Embedding a corrective statement in the body of the ad is an effective strategy to convey health information to consumers, which can be mandated under the Tobacco Control Act. Eye-tracking results objectively demonstrate that text-only warnings are not viewed by smokers, thus minimizing their effectiveness for conveying risk information.

Keywords: Eye-tracking; Tobacco advertising; Tobacco regulatory policy.