Health Promotion International, Vol 13, 45-53, Copyright © 1998 by Oxford University Press
E Wimbush, A MacGregor and E Fraser
The promotion of walking as a form of exercise holds considerable
potential, both in terms of health benefits and its wide appeal to inactive
groups. This paper presents the results of the evaluation of a national
mass media walking campaign in Scotland which involved a 40 s television
advertisement and a telephone helpline. The target population consisted of
people aged 30-55 who are not regular exercisers. The campaign impact was
assessed in terms of awareness of the campaign and pre- and post-campaign
changes in knowledge and beliefs about walking as a good form of exercise,
in motivations and intentions regarding walking/exercise and in
walking/exercise behaviour. The evaluation involved two population surveys
and baseline and follow-up surveys of the helpline callers. Awareness
levels for the television advertisement peaked at 70% of the adult
population during the first 4-week burst of advertising, falling to 54%
during the non-broadcast period. The evaluation findings show that, at a
population level, the campaign had a notable positive impact on knowledge
about walking as a form of exercise but no impact on walking behaviour.
Among the helpline callers the campaign had a substantial impact at the
level of intentions and behaviour: 48% of the callers followed up at 1 year
claimed to be more physically active and there was a overall shift from the
'contemplation' stage of change at baseline towards the 'action' stage at
the 10-week and 1-year follow-ups. The proportion of adults aware of the
telephone helpline rose from 5% at the start of the campaign to 16% 4
months later, but only 5% of these respondents used the service. This level
of use represents 0.1% coverage at the start of the campaign rising to 1% 4
months later.Key words: evaluation; mass media;
physical activity; walking
ARTICLES
Impacts of a national mass media campaign on walking in Scotland
Research & Evaluation Division, Health Education Board for Scotland, Woodburn House, Canaan Lane, Edinburgh EH10 4SG, UK; Corresponding author
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