The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #67521

John H. Holmes, PhD, Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Pennsylvania, School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, 215-898-4833, jholmes@cceb.med.upenn.edu, William C. Holmes, MD, MSCE, Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 423 Guardian Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19104, Melanie C. Green, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, 3815 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19143, Stephen E. Kimmel, MD, MSCE, Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 423 Guardian Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19104, and Barry G. Silverman, PhD, Ackoff Center for Advancement of Systems Approaches (ACASA), University of Pennsylvania, Towne Bldg, Rm 229c, Philadelphia, PA 19104.

Heart Sense is a multimedia role-playing game, the goal of which is to help the player overcome his/her resistive behavior issues and seek immediate care for a first heart attack. He/she plays the game by manipulating the main character (represented as a male) in the story which includes a set of three heart attack scenarios in which the main character may, or may not, save the victim. In order to assess the potential efficacy of the game as a behavioral intervention, we conducted two focus groups, stratified by gender. We used a nominal group technique in which the participants play the game individually, complete a questionnaire, and then participate in the group discussion. Nine women and eight men played the game. The mean age in the women's group was 61.4 years (SD=7.0), and in the men's, 59.5 (SD=7.0). In each group, there were six African-Americans and three Caucasians. In the post-game questionnaire, eight (89%) of the women responded that the characters in the game were "like them," while only four (50%) of the men responded similarly. There was no discernable gender-based difference in perceptions of ability to make the main character do or say what the user wanted. Participants were asked with which character they most strongly identified. Men and women identified equally with the main character. However, men identified more frequently with one of the two male heart attack victims than did women, and only women identified with one of the female secondary characters in the same scenario.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of the session, the participant in the session will be able to:
• Recognize gender-based differences and similarities with respect to computer-based interactive educational interventions which depict people in realistic scenarios.
• Articulate the need for gender-sensitive character representations in scenario-based computerized health behavioral interventions.

Keywords: Behavioral Research, Heart Disease

Related Web page: www.acasa.upenn.edu/heart.htm

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.