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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Nancy Morris, PhD, Dept. of BTMM, Temple University, Annenberg Hall, 2020 N. 13th St., Philadelphia, PA 19122, 215 204-8394, nancy.morris@temple.edu and Renee Hobbs, EdD, School of Communications and Theater, Temple University, 2020 N. 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122.

Abstract

Background: Cigarette advertisements are required to carry the same Surgeon General's warning labels that cigarette packets do. This presentation examines how Philadelphia Puerto Ricans interpret these warning labels in magazine advertisements.

Sample: Availability sample of 36 Latino families (141 individuals aged 9-70) from the area of Philadelphia with the greatest concentration of Latinos (>75%). Spanish was usually the preferred language, indicating first-generation arrivals to the United States mainland and a relatively unassimilated population. This small sample will likely be useful for generalizing to relatively newly-arrived Latinos.

Method: In-home interviews with each family member and all family members together gathered qualitative data on interpretations of media materials concerning smoking. For this portion of the study, family members were asked to comment on two magazine ads, one a Spanish-language ad for Virginia Slims cigarettes and the other an English-language ad for Kool cigarettes from a Latino youth-targeted magazine. Interviewees' responses are examined for overall patterns and for responses related to age, gender, education level, number of years in the U.S. mainland, and language preference.

Conclusions: Participants' wide-ranging responses to the warning labels in cigarette ads included the belief that the warning label was voluntarily included in the ad by the cigarette company to help educate consumers, the belief that the ad itself was an anti-smoking message, and the complete failure to notice the warning label. Examination of these responses can contribute to advocacy concerning warning labels and to tailoring anti-smoking messages to this community and its subsets.

Learning Objectives: Learning objectives At the conclusion of the session, the participant/learner will be able to

• recognize that cigarette warning labels are not interpreted the same way by all readers, and that not everyone is aware that cigarette warning labels exist because they are required by law
• list different interpretations of cigarette warning labels exhibited by Philadelphia Puerto Ricans
• recognize the need for public health advocates to be aware of variations in interpretations of common messages and to take into account differences between different population groups in program planning

Keywords: Latinos, Tobacco

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered