Background:

Despite evidence of the protective effects of a diet high in fruits and vegetables, intake among Ohio adults remains low. A health communication campaign is an attractive behavior change intervention due to its potential to reach a large audience.

Focus of the Article:

This study aims to examine the development of a state-level health communication campaign and to assess outcome measures relative to fruit and vegetable intake.

Research Question:

Two research questions were evaluated: (1) How did Ohio State University Extension use formative research to inform the campaign’s development? and (2) Was campaign exposure associated with increased fruit and vegetable consumption or readiness to increase fruit and vegetable consumption among the target audience comprising Ohio adults eligible for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)?

Program Design/Approach:

Ohio State University Extension conducted extensive formative evaluation prior to developing the Celebrate Your Plate health communication campaign. The campaign was designed to increase the target audiences’ fruit and vegetable consumption, reinforce messages taught in nutrition education classes, and reach a larger segment of the population with messages promoting healthy behaviors. The campaign was implemented statewide through a multi-year phased rollout and comprised a mix of printed and digital communication channels and an accompanying website. Supportive individual- and community-level programming was also implemented by Ohio State University Extension as part of a multilevel approach to increasing fruit and vegetable intake.

Importance to the Social Marketing Field:

The limited existing research on the effectiveness of health communication campaigns to increase consumption of healthy foods largely focuses on national campaigns and this study examines effectiveness of a locally tailored campaign.

Methods:

This study comprised a mixed-methods multi-stage evaluation: qualitative data were collected in four pilot counties to assess the target audience’s awareness and reception of the campaign and recommendations for future efforts. Cross-sectional post-implementation outcome evaluation data were collected and analyzed to assess campaign exposure and behaviors of the target audience.

Results:

During the pilot evaluation, the target audience responded positively to campaign materials and identified the perceived cost of healthy recipes as a main barrier to changing eating patterns. After the campaign was rolled out statewide, approximately 18% of the target audience indicated exposure to Celebrate Your Plate in aided recall. Campaign exposure was significantly associated with higher fruit (p < .001) and vegetable (p < .001) consumption. The Stages of Change model was used to conceptualize readiness to increase fruit and vegetable consumption; campaign exposure was significantly associated with readiness to increase fruit (p = .001) and vegetable (p = .027) consumption.

Recommendations for Research or Practice:

Results of this study show that campaign exposure is significantly associated with higher fruit and vegetable consumption and readiness to consume more fruits and vegetables among the target audience, though more rigorous evaluation is needed to determine causality.

Limitations:

This study included cross-sectional data and lacked a control group and consequently cannot be used to determine if behavioral observations resulted from campaign exposure. Additionally, this study relied on self-reported data and is susceptible to response biases.

中文翻译：

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一项研究驱动的健康传播运动的发展和评估，以增加符合 SNAP 资格的俄亥俄州成年人的水果和蔬菜消费

背景：

尽管有证据表明富含水果和蔬菜的饮食具有保护作用，但俄亥俄州成年人的摄入量仍然很低。健康宣传运动是一种有吸引力的行为改变干预措施，因为它有可能覆盖大量受众。

文章重点：

本研究旨在检查州级健康宣传活动的发展，并评估与水果和蔬菜摄入量相关的结果措施。

研究问题：

评估了两个研究问题：(1) 俄亥俄州立大学推广部如何使用形成性研究为运动的发展提供信息？(2) 活动曝光是否与有资格参加补充营养援助计划 (SNAP) 的俄亥俄州成年人组成的目标受众增加水果和蔬菜消费量或准备增加水果和蔬菜消费量有关？

程序设计/方法：

俄亥俄州立大学推广部在开展“庆祝您的盘子”健康宣传活动之前进行了广泛的形成性评估。该活动旨在增加目标受众的水果和蔬菜消费量，强化营养教育课程中教授的信息，并通过宣传健康行为的信息覆盖更多人群。该活动通过多年分阶段推出在全州范围内实施，包括印刷和数字通信渠道以及随附网站的混合。作为增加水果和蔬菜摄入量的多层次方法的一部分，俄亥俄州立大学推广部还实施了支持性个人和社区层面的计划。

对社交营销领域的重要性：

关于增加健康食品消费的健康宣传活动有效性的有限现有研究主要集中在全国性活动上，而本研究则考察了针对当地量身定制的活动的有效性。

方法：

这项研究包括混合方法多阶段评估：在四个试点县收集定性数据，以评估目标受众对运动的认识和接受程度以及对未来工作的建议。横断面的实施后结果评估数据被收集和分析，以评估目标受众的活动曝光和行为。

结果：

在试点评估期间，目标受众对活动材料做出了积极回应，并将健康食谱的感知成本确定为改变饮食模式的主要障碍。该活动在全州范围内展开后，大约 18% 的目标受众表示曾在辅助回忆中接触过“庆祝你的盘子”。运动暴露与较高的水果 ( p < .001) 和蔬菜 ( p < .001) 消费量显着相关。变化阶段模型用于概念化增加水果和蔬菜消费的准备情况；运动接触与增加水果 ( p = .001) 和蔬菜 ( p = .027) 消费的意愿显着相关。

研究或实践建议：

这项研究的结果表明，虽然需要更严格的评估来确定因果关系，但活动的曝光率与更高的水果和蔬菜消费量以及目标受众对更多水果和蔬菜的消费意愿显着相关。

限制：

该研究包括横断面数据，缺乏对照组，因此不能用于确定行为观察是否由运动暴露引起。此外，这项研究依赖于自我报告的数据，容易受到反应偏差的影响。