Evaluation of “being healthy, being away from chronic diseases” public service advertisement in Chongqing, China: A cross-sectional study
Background: Chronic diseases have become a global public health issue, and mass media campaigns are often used to encourage and sustain positive behavior change. Our aim was to evaluate the effect of public service advertising on the awareness of Chongqing citizens. Methods: The theme of the public service advertisement launched in Chongqing was “being healthy, being away from chronic diseases.” A self-designed questionnaire was used in an outdoor intercept survey to collect information about the perception of citizens toward the effect of the advertisement on cognitive situations. Results: A total of 985 valid questionnaires were received. Respondents had good understanding of chronic disease (23.6±4.1, total score: 30), but only 58.4% of participants thought cancer is one type of chronic disease. The awareness of cancer as a chronic disease among the group who had seen this advertisement (63.6%) was higher than that of the group who had not seen the advertisement (56.5%) (p=0.046). After watching the advertisement, approximately 77.4% of participants attempted to remind their family and friends to prevent chronic diseases, roughly 78.2% tried to persuade their family and friends to change their unhealthy lifestyle habits, and 73.2% of participants reported that it increased the possibility of their own lifestyle change. Logistic regression analysis indicates that occupation, educational level, watching the advertising through TV, watching the advertising through indoor LED screen, and watching the advertising through mobile TV affected the three post-viewing behavior changes Conclusion : The public service advertisement achieved a certain knowledge propaganda effect. It may help change awareness and improve health behavior of the public. Key words: Public service advertisement , Chronic diseases, Health; Awareness, Behavior