pink-book

Communication programs can take
advantage of the strengths of each of the
above by using multiple methods. A program
to decrease tobacco use among youth, for
example, could include:
(See Appendix B for an overview of some
other relevant theoretical models.) Social
marketing concentrates on tailoring
programs to serve a defined group and is
most successful when it is implemented as
INTRO
• Paid advertising to ensure that youth are
exposed to on-target, unfiltered
motivational messages
• Media advocacy to support regulatory or
policy changes to limit access to tobacco
• Public relations to support
anti-tobacco attitudes
• Media literacy instruction in schools
to reduce the influence of the
tobacco industry
• Entertainment education and advocacy
to decrease the depiction of tobacco use
in movies
• Partnerships with commercial enterprises
(such as retail chains popular
among youth) to spread the
anti-smoking message
Using multiple methods increases the need
for careful planning and program
management to ensure that all efforts are
integrated and consistently support program
goals and objectives.
Planning Frameworks, Theories,
and Models of Change
Sound health communication development
should draw upon theories and models that
offer different perspectives on the intended
audiences and on the steps that can
influence their change. No single theory
dominates health communication because
health problems, populations, cultures, and
contexts vary. Many programs achieve the
greatest impact by combining theories to
address a problem. The approach to health
communication we use in this book is based
on the social marketing framework.
NATIONAL OBJECTIVES FOR RESEARCH
AND EVALUATION
The Health Communication chapter of
Healthy People 2010, the nationwide
health promotion and disease
prevention agenda, identifies increasing
the proportion of health
communication activities that include
research and evaluation as one of six
objectives for the field for the next
decade (objective 11-3). This objective
focuses attention on the need to make
research and evaluation integral parts of
initial program design. Research and
evaluation are used to systematically
obtain the information needed to
refine the design, development,
implementation, adoption, redesign,
and overall quality of a
communication intervention.
Making Health Communication Programs Work 7