272953 What social science has to offer to effective public health communication

Thursday, June 28, 2012 : 8:30 AM - 8:50 AM

Susan Bales, MA , FrameWorks Institute, Washington, DC
Social science research can help public health communicators understand where public understanding routinely gets derailed. Explanatory metaphors can help close the gap between expert understanding and public thinking even on complex abstract topics such as environmental health, obesity and climate change. An evidence-based approach to communications is necessary if public health communicators are to help people shift their lens on public issues.

Learning Areas:
Diversity and culture
Environmental health sciences
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related public policy
Public health or related research

Learning Objectives:
1. Define cultural models and discuss their importance to public health communication 2. Demonstrate how activating different cultural models yields different levels of policy support 3. Assess various ways of framing public health and their outcomes

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am founder of an independent non profit research institute that for 13 years has conducted original multi-disciplinary, multi-method research on public thinking about such topics as environmental health, addiction, child development and mental health, etc. Our work is used to inform science communications nationally and internationally.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

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