RISK COMMUNICATION IN CIGARETTE HEALTH WARNING LABELS AND BEHAVIOR CHANGE IN KENYA: A QUALITATIVE STUDY
Downloads
Background: The introduction of three-picture health warnings on cigarette packs, approved in 2014 and implemented in 2018, aimed to raise awareness and educate the public about the dangers of smoking. Therefore, the effectiveness of health warning labels on tobacco products is being questioned due to consumer reluctance to pay attention to the visuals or textual content. Purpose: This paper examines risk communication messages on cigarette warning labels that promote behavior change among adult smokers. Methods: The study focused on adults aged between 30 and 40 years who were smokers. Participants were selected from smoking zones in Kitui and Machakos Counties, Kenya. Data were collected through focus group discussions (FGDs). Results: According to FGDs, cigarette warning labels were found to influence how Kenyan adult smokers perceive health risks. The labels were observed to enhance understanding of tobacco-related risks among smokers and evidence of optimism bias among the smokers, indicating that they may be overly optimistic about their own health risks compared to others. While the labels were associated with a reduction in smoking habits, it was noted that this effect had limitations. The warning labels were deemed crucial but insufficient to induce a significant change in behavior. Conclusion: It was concluded that current cigarette warning labels in Kenya have a limited influence on risk perception among adult smokers. Importance of targeted communication strategies addressing optimism bias, to effectively combat risk perception among adult smokers is needed. Also, relatable and clear imagery could help smokers better understand and internalize potential health consequences.
Asyfiradayati, S. K. M. M. PH. R. 2021. Factors Associated with Pediatric Pulmonary Tuberculosis Incidence In Surakarta City Health Office Work Area. Journal of Public Health Research and Community Health Development, 4(2), 99–106. https://doi.org/10.20473/jphrecode.v4i2.18568
Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids. 2021. Tobacco Control Laws. https://www.tobaccocontrollaws.org/legislation/country/kenya/summary
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2022. Tobacco Control Interventions. https://www.cdc.gov/policy/hst/hi5/tobaccointerventions/index.html#:~:text=Effective%20population%2Dbased%20commercial%20tobacco,free%20policies%2C%20and%20cessation%20access.
China, J. 2018. The Influence of warning labels on the risk perception of university students towards alcohol abuse and the subsequent behaviour. A case study of Masinde Muliro University of Science and Technology (Analytical. Daystar University).
Evans, A., Peters, E., Shoben, A., Meilleur, L., Klein, E., Tompkins, M. K., Romer, D., & Tusler, M. 2017. Cigarette Graphic Warning Labels Are Not Created Equal: They Can Increase or Decrease Smokers’ Quit Intentions Relative to Text-Only Warnings. Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 19(10). 1155-1162. https://doi.org/10.1093/ntr/ntw389
Global Burden of Disease. 2019. Global Burden of Disease [database}. Washington, DC: Institute of Health Metrics.
Government of Kenya GOK. 2015. The 2014 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey, Nairobi. Kenya.
Joo, H. J., Joo, J. H., Kim, S. H., Park, E. C., & Jang, S. I. 2022. Association Between Graphic Health Warning Labels on Cigarette Packs and Smoking Cessation Attempts in Korean Adolescent Smokers: A Cross-Sectional Study. Frontiers in Public Health, 11(10), 789707. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.789707
Jones, C., Jensen, J., Scherr, C., Brown, N., & Christy, K. 2015. The Health Belief Model as an Explanatory Framework in Communication Research: Exploring Parallel, Serial, and Moderated Mediation. Health Communication, 30(6), 566-76. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2013.873363
Kaai, S. C., Sansone, G., Meng, G., Ong'ang'o, J. R, Goma, F., Ikamari, L., Quah, A. C. K., & Fong, G. T. 2023. Quasi-experimental evaluation of Kenya's pictorial health warnings versus Zambia's single text-only warning: findings from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Project. Tobacco Control, 32(2), 139-145. https://doi.org/10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2020-056396
Kenya Medical & Research Institute. 2021. New report shows that picture-based cigarette pack warnings benefit Kenyan smokers and calls for larger warnings on all tobacco products to encourage quitting. https://www.kemri.go.ke/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/New-report-shows-that-picture-based-cigarette-pack-warnings-benefit-Kenyan-smokers-and-calls-for-larger-warnings-on-all-tobacco-products-to-encourage-quitting
Kurgat, C., Kibet, J., Mosonik, B., & Opuru, F. 2019. Trends in Cigarette Smoking in Kenya and the Challenges Impeding Cessation. American Journal of Biological and Environmental Statistics. 5(1), 7–15. http://dx.doi.org/10.11648/j.ajbes.20190501.12
Leinberger-Jabari A., Golob, M. M., Lindson, N., & Hartmann-Boyce, J. 2024. Effectiveness of culturally tailoring smoking cessation interventions for reducing or quitting combustible tobacco: A systematic review and meta-analyses. Addiction, 119(4), 629-648. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.16400
Nation Africa. 2022. How effective are Warning Labels on Cigarette Packets?. https://nation.africa/kenya/news/how-effective-warning-labels-cigarette-packets--3746002
Ngaruiya, C., Abubakar, H., & Kiptui, D., Kendagor, A., Ntakuka, M. W., Nyakundi, P., Gathecha, G. 2018. Tobacco use and its determinants in the 2015 Kenya WHO STEPS survey. BMC Public Health, 18(Suppl 3), 1223. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-018-6058-5
Poggiolini, C., & Wu, A. M. S 2019. High self-efficacy regarding smoking cessation may weaken the intention to quit smoking. Cogent Psychology, 6(1), 1574096. https://doi.org/10.1080/23311908.2019.1574096
Pribadi, E. T., & Devy, S. R. 2020. Application of the Health Belief Model on the intention to stop smoking behavior among young adult women. Journal of public health research, 9(2), 1817. https://doi.org/10.4081/jphr.2020.1817
Tajeri Moghadam, M., Zobeidi, T., Sieber, S., & Löhr, K. 2022. Investigating the Adoption of Precautionary Behaviors Among Young Rural Adults in South Iran During COVID-19. Frontiers in Public Health, 10, 787929. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2022.787929
WHO. 2021. WHO global report on trends in prevalence of tobacco use 2000-2025, fourth edition. https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240039322
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Copyright of the article is transferred to the journal, by the knowledge of the author, whilst the moral right of the publication belongs to the author. In order to be accepted and published by JPH RECODE, author(s) submitting the article manuscript should complete all the review stages. By submitting the manuscript, the author(s) agreed to these following terms:
The copyright of accepted articles shall be assigned to JPH RECODE as the publisher of the journal. The intended copyright includes the rights to publish articles in various forms (including reprints). JPH RECODE maintain the publishing rights to the published articles.
Authors are permitted to disseminate published article by sharing the link/DOI of the article at JPH RECODE. Authors are allowed to use their articles for any legal purposes deemed necessary without written permission form JPH RECODE with an acknowledgement of initial publication to this journal.
The Copyright Transfer Agreement Form can be downloaded ON THIS FORM.