An evaluation of Arizona's youth tobacco access prevention media campaign

Objectives: The goal of this research effort is to evaluate changes in public opinion associated with the youth tobacco access (YTA) prevention media campaign in Arizona. Methods: This evaluation effort utilized a pre-post test quasi-experimental design with a control group. The sampling pool consists of Arizona adult residents from Maricopa (intervention) and Pima (control) counties. Pre-test data were collected via phone survey in November of 2002 (n =823). Post-test data were collected in late summer 2003 (n =872). Data were analyzed in January 2004. Results: Exposure to the campaign was limited. Nonetheless, exposure was associated with increased satisfaction with community efforts, perceptions that one's community is strongly opposed to minors purchasing tobacco, and a reduction in the perceived ease in which a minor can purchase tobacco. At post-intervention, community respondents also assigned increased responsibility for YTA prevention to stores that sell tobacco. Conclusions: While exposure to the campaign was limited, important changes were observed. For example, at post-campaign, the respondents in the intervention community reported greater satisfaction with current YTA prevention efforts. However, future research must investigate if increased satisfaction leads to more or less community involvement. Further, research must also investigate whether a campaign influencing community members to assign greater responsibility for YTA prevention on the retailers selling tobacco serves community interests. Data from this evaluation suggest that researchers and practitioners must be aware of potential negative, as well as potential positive, outcomes of YTA prevention efforts.