Do “clicker” educational sessions enhance the effectiveness of health-behavior social norms campaigns?

Background: The social norms approach is based upon research in social psychology, suggesting that an individuals' health behaviors will be most strongly associated with perceptions of the “normal” health behaviors of his/her closest peers (Berkowitz, 2009; Lewis & Neighbors, 2006). Most college students significantly over-estimate the amount of alcohol their peers drink when socializing. Social norms marketing campaigns are a widely used way of correcting misperceptions.

Purpose: This study compares the effectiveness of a “standard” social norms marketing (SNM) campaign for individuals with and without exposure to additional educational sessions using audience response technology (“clickers”). Effectiveness measures include alcohol use (reported actual use during socializing events) and perceived use (students' misperceptions about alcohol-use norms).

Significance: When they are well-implemented, campus-wide SNM campaigns reduce misperceptions and subsequent high risk drinking behavior. However the strength of SNM campaigns depends upon several factors, including: fidelity to design standards, how closely the individual identifies with the referenced peer group, and the believability of the SNM campaign message.

Methodology: Standardized questions from the American College Health Association's National College Health Assessment (ACHA-NCHA) are used to evaluate actual and perceived alcohol use. Additional site-specific questions assess individual exposure to the interventions.

Findings/ Results: Although fewer students were exposed to “clicker” technology, it was more effective than SNM posters in reducing misperceptions of normative alcohol use for those students.

Conclusions/ Recommendations: Data support conclusions that social norms campaigns are effective in decreasing student perception-reality gaps. Poster campaigns are most effective when supported by group “clicker” health-related sessions.