A NEW WAY OF THINKING ABOUT HEALTHY LIFESTYLES: HEALTH COMMUNICATION APPLICATIONS Renee Lyons, Ph.D. Lynn Langille, M.A. Atlantic Health Promotion Research Centre, Dalhousie University

WORKSHOP OVERVIEW 1. What Influences Healthy Lifestyles? 2. Thinking about Healthy Lifestyles 3. Incorporating New Thinking into Current Conceptualizations of Health and Lifestyles 4. Break 5. Overview of Health Communications and Introduction to Community-based Social Marketing 6. Developing Health Communications to Promote Healthy Lifestyles 7. Using Health Communications to Promote Healthy Lifestyles

1. WHAT INFLUENCES HEALTHY LIFESTYLES? Using Physical Activity as an example… Do you consider yourself to be physically active? What influences your decisions to be active (or not)? What are the barriers to physical activity? What kind of messages would you respond to positively in order to increase or maintain your level of physical activity? Who should receive messages about physical activity in order for you to be as active as you would like?

2. THINKING ABOUT HEALTHY LIFESTYLES Popular concepts and their interrelationship:  Lifestyle  Wellness  Healthy Living  Population Health and the Determinants of Health Population Health A population health approach considers the entire range of individual and collective factors and conditions - and their interactions - that have been shown to be correlated with health status. Source:

POPULATION HEALTH Determinants of Health Income and social status Social support networks Education Employment and working conditions Social environments Physical environments Biology and genetic endowment Personal health practices and coping skills Healthy child development Health services Gender Culture

POPULATION HEALTH Demographic Focus Action is directed at the health of the entire population, or sub-population, rather than individuals. Strategies and Settings A population health approach uses a variety of strategies and settings to act on the health determinants in partnership with sectors outside the traditional health system or sector. Broadened Definition of Health Health is a capacity or resource rather than a state (of physical, mental and social well-being) which is embedded in social, economic and physical environments. Health is “the capacity of people to adapt to, respond to, or control life’s challenges and changes” (Frankish, 1996)

CHOICES AND CHANCES FOR A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE Chances: Opportunities and limitations for choice vary considerably The social gradient Social inclusion and exclusion Choices: Macro “choice points” over the life cycle Micro “choice points” in daily interaction

HEALTH SOCIALIZATION Agents of Health Socialization: Family Peers Workplaces Schools Society/Culture Media

HEALTHY LIFESTYLES Creating a Culture that Fosters Health Interdependence between lifestyle and social environment Collective and individual lifestyles Fostering a Collective Orientation to Health 1. My health impacts the lifestyles of others. 2. My actions influence the lifestyles of other people. 3. I influence the conditions in my community that contribute to healthy lifestyles. 4. We (acting together) influence the health of others.

3. INCORPORATING NEW THINKING INTO CURRENT CONCEPTUALIZATIONS OF HEALTH AND LIFESTYLES Small Group Work: How can these new ideas fit into your current thinking and work in health communications? How do we get people to begin thinking about a “collective” orientation to health? Worksheet

4. OVERVIEW OF HEALTH COMMUNICATION AND INTRODUCTION TO COMMUNITY- BASED SOCIAL MARKETING Goals of Health Communication: 1. Awareness 2. Understanding 3. Action

WHAT IS HEALTH COMMUNICATION? Inter-personal health related communication Care-providers Conveying health information (e.g., cancer risk) Communication competence Patient & Care Provider (sex talk and gender) Media (health information seeking; anthrax coverage) Knowledge translation Influencing health behavior Policy analysis (text) Influences on public attitudes (e.g., religion)

ELEMENTS OF HEALTH COMMUNICATION Channels Paid Advertisement Information channels Entertainment Design Visual Sound Use and Choice of Spokespersons Familiar Figures Celebrities Authority Figures Links to Familiar Themes and Values Identification Lead-in to unfamiliar ideas

SOCIAL MARKETING Goal: to reach people with a message that will help them decide to change their behaviour. Effective Social Marketing Messages will be: Understandable Not scary or offensive Applicable Culturally sensitive Accessible Noticeable

COMMON BARRIERS TO EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION Ignorance Selective inattention Selective inexposure Principles (morality, religion, culture)

COMMUNITY- BASED SOCIAL MARKETING Fostering sustainable behaviour change….. (D. McKenzie Mohr) Four steps in CBSM: 1. Identify the barriers and benefits to an activity 2. Develop a communication strategy that utilizes behaviour change tools 3. Pilot the strategy 4. Evaluate

COMMUNITY BASED SOCIAL MARKETING Barriers to behaviour change: Internal (lack of knowledge, absence of motivation) External (changes that need to occur in order for the behaviour to be more convenient or affordable)

BEHAVIOUR CHANGE TOOLS Commitment people who have initially agreed to a small request are subsequently more likely to agree to a larger request Prompts people have to remember to perform the desired actions Norms social guidelines for behaviour Incentives particularly useful when motivation to engage in action is low

PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION Capture your audience’s attention: Make messages vivid, personal and concrete. Make sure messages are clear and specific. Know your audience: Attitudes, beliefs and behaviours. Use a credible source: Individuals or organizations tend to be viewed as credible when they have expertise or are seen as trustworthy.

PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION Make your message easy to remember. All sustainable activities depend on memory. Help people remember what to do, when to do it, and how to do it. Provide personal or community goals: They can help with motivation. Emphasize personal contact: Provide opportunities for people to model sustainable behaviour for one another. Provide feedback.

5. CASE STUDIES IN COMMUNITY- BASED SOCIAL MARKETING Aging Well in Rural Places Safe Sex Practices in the Gay Community

6. DEVELOPING HEALTH COMMUNICATIONS TO PROMOTE HEALTHY LIFESTYLES Small group work Our task is to design health communications about physical activity in a variety of settings (contexts for health socialization and development of healthy lifestyles). Worksheet Menu of Communication Strategies

7. USING HEALTH COMMUNICATIONS TO PROMOTE HEALTHY LIFESTYLES Focus on a collective orientation to healthy lifestyle Use research findings to support your design and your messages Collaborate with others Evaluate your efforts If at first you don’t succeed……