California State University, Northridge (CSUN) communication studies professor, Motasem Kalaji, has collaborated with researchers from Cornell University to develop and test new e-cigarette warning messages. The research aims to understand how different populations, including non-smoking youth and adult smokers, perceive and respond to various warning statements related to potential health risks.
The study, co-authored by Kalaji, was published in June 2023 and examines the effectiveness of e-cigarette warnings in targeted populations. According to Kalaji, there is no one-size-fits-all message when it comes to health warnings. Different audiences require different messages in order to effectively discourage or encourage certain behaviors.
The research is part of a larger project led by Cornell University professors Jeff Niederdeppe and Sahara Byrne. Kalaji, from the CSUN Mike Curb College of Arts, Media, and Communication, worked alongside the researchers and participated in conducting focus group studies. The team analyzed the responses of 37 adults and 32 teenagers to different warning statements, covering categories such as toxic ingredients, health effects, cognitive development, addiction, and unknown risks.
The study found that individuals in each group perceived the warnings differently, indicating that the language used in the messages needed to be tailored to each specific population. The goal of the warnings is to encourage individuals to think more about the harmful effects of e-cigarette use, with the hope that it may eventually lead to quitting.
Currently, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) only mandates one warning for e-cigarettes, which states that the product contains nicotine. The research team believes that a rotation of messages and more targeted warnings could be more effective in addressing the growing vaping epidemic.
The research was funded by a grant from the National Cancer Institute and the paper is titled "Perceived Threat and Fear Responses to e-Cigarette Warning Label Messages." It can be accessed on the PLOS ONE website.
For more information on the study and to read the full paper, visit [link to the article].
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