ERIC Number: EJ1009694
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2013-Feb
Pages: 10
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1090-1981
EISSN: N/A
Effectiveness of a National Media Campaign to Promote Parent-Child Communication about Sex
Davis, Kevin C.; Evans, W. Douglas; Kamyab, Kian
Health Education & Behavior, v40 n1 p97-106 Feb 2013
Background: Although there is debate on the effectiveness of youth-focused abstinence education programs, research confirms that parents can influence their children’s decisions about sexual behavior. To leverage parent-based approaches to adolescent sexual health, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services launched the "Parents Speak Up National Campaign" (PSUNC) to encourage parent-child communication about sex. Previous experimental studies have found the campaign to be efficacious in increasing parent-child communication. But to date, the actual reach of the campaign and its real-world effectiveness in promoting parent-child communication has not been established. The present study addresses this gap. Method: The authors surveyed 1,804 parents of 10- to 14-year-old children from the nationally representative Knowledge Networks online panel. The survey included questions about parents' awareness of PSUNC ads and parent-child communication behaviors. The authors also analyzed market-level data on campaign gross rating points, a measure of market-level intensity of PSUNC advertising in the United States. Multivariate regressions were used to examine the association between PSUNC exposure and a three-item scale for parent-child communication. Results: Overall, 59.4% of parents in the sample reported awareness of PSUNC. The authors found that higher market-level PSUNC gross rating points were associated with increased parent-child communication. Similar relationships were observed between self-reported awareness of PSUNC and increased frequency of communication and recommendations to wait. These associations were particularly strong among mothers. Conclusions: This study provides the first field-based data on the real-world reach and effectiveness of PSUNC among parents. The data support earlier experimental trials of PSUNC, showing that the campaign is associated with greater parent-child communication, primarily among mothers. Further research may be needed to develop additional messages for fathers. (Contains 1 figure and 4 tables.)
Descriptors: Parent Child Relationship, Sexuality, Sex Education, Program Effectiveness, Decision Making, Adolescents, Parent Attitudes, Networks, Internet, Knowledge Level, Advertising, Multivariate Analysis, Correlation, Mothers, Online Surveys, Factor Analysis, Least Squares Statistics
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A