Campaign Receptivity Matters for E-Cigarette Use

Background Campaign receptivity is critical in public education campaigns seeking to decrease e-cigarette use.Purpose This study explored the relationship between campaign receptivity, e-cigarette use, intentions to use, and campaign-targeted beliefs among young people.Methods Data were drawn from the Truth Continuous Tracker, a repeated cross-sectional survey of participants residing in the United States from a national online panel. Data were collected between September 2021 and October 2022 (N = 14,303; 15–24 years). This time frame corresponds to the launch of the truth mental health messaging campaign, “It’s Messing With Our Heads.”Results Results revealed a negative relationship between campaign receptivity score, past 30-day e-cigarette use, and intentions to use. Respondents with higher campaign receptivity had lower odds of past 30-day e-cigarette use (odds ratios ranging from 0.45 to 0.70) and intentions to use (odds ratios ranging from 0.34 to 0.60). Results also revealed a positive association between campaign receptivity and beliefs.Discussion Health Educators should design campaigns that influence e-cigarette beliefs and behaviors by emphasizing key aspects that shape the target audience’s response to health messages.Translation to Health Education Practice Tailoring e-cigarette prevention campaign messaging to the specific needs of the target audience may enhance receptivity, thereby influencing e-cigarette beliefs, use intentions, and patterns of use.