truth® Research Summary

American Journal of Preventive Medicine (AJPM) – December 2010

Richardson AK, Green M, Xiao H, Sokol N, Vallone D. Evidence for truth®: the young adult response to a youth-focused anti-smoking media campaign. Am J Prev Med. 2010;39(6):500-6.

Data on young adult respondents from eight Legacy Media Tracking Surveys were analyzed in this study.
The researchers found that truth’s reach extends beyond its primary audience of youth ages 12-17.
Results showed that awareness of the truth campaign reached as high as 68 percent among young adults aged 18 to 24 years.
Within the 18-24 year-old group, current smokers reported the highest awareness of the truth campaign compared to never smokers and those who once smoked but have since quit.
There were also several statistically significant associations between anti-smoking attitudes and beliefs targeted by the truth campaign, and the intention not to smoke among non-smokers as well as the intention to quit among smokers.

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health (IJERPH) – February 2009

Davis KC, Farrelly MC, Messeri P, Duke J. The Impact of National Smoking Prevention Campaigns on Tobacco-Related Beliefs, Intentions to Smoke and Smoking Initiation: Results from a Longitudinal Survey of Youth in the United States. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2009; 6(2): 722-740.

This study examined the differences between the approaches of the truth campaign and a Philip Morris campaign, “Think. Don’t Smoke” (TDS), and evaluated the two campaigns’ effects on anti-smoking beliefs, intent to smoke and smoking initiation among youth.
Findings showed that recall of the truth campaign increased anti-smoking beliefs among teens, decreased their intentions to smoke, and lowered their rates of starting to smoke.
In contrast, Philip Morris’ “Think. Don’t Smoke” campaign had virtually no effect on changes in teens’ tobacco-related attitudes and beliefs on smoking initiation.
The study also concluded that TDS was actually associated with an increase in teens’ intentions to smoke soon.

American Journal of Preventive Medicine (AJPM) – May 2009

Farrelly MC, Nonnemaker J, Davis KC, Hussin A. The Influence of the National truth Campaign on Smoking Initiation. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2009; 36(5): 379-384.

In this study, researchers at RTI International found a direct association between the level of truth advertising exposure and a decreased risk of beginning to smoke among teens.
Results showed that, during the truth campaign (2000-2004), approximately 450,000 fewer adolescents and young adults initiated smoking nationwide.
Researchers concluded that exposure to the truth campaign has an independent effect on smoking initiation beyond multiple other influences, including those which are individual, media market or state-level.
Findings from this study contribute to the existing evidence that anti-smoking campaigns can be effective in helping to prevent youth smoking.

Holtgrave DR, Wunderink KA, Vallone DM, Healton CG. Cost-Utility Analysis of the National truth Campaign to Prevent Youth Smoking. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 2009; 36(5): 385-388.

Holtgrave and his colleagues examined whether the economic investment in the truth campaign was justifiable given its effect on public health outcomes.
The researchers examined the years 2000 through 2002 and found that the truth campaign was not only cost-effective, it helped to improve the public’s health.
During 2000-2002, truth recouped the costs of the campaign and saved between $1.9 and $5.4 billion in medical care costs to society.

Ethnicity and Health – February 2009

Cowell AJ, Farrelly MC, Chou R, Vallone DM. Assessing the impact of the national ‘truth’ anti-smoking campaign on beliefs, attitudes, and intent to smoke by race/ethnicity. Ethnicity and Health, 2009; 14(1):75-91.

In this study, researchers from RTI International examined racial/ethnic differences in the association between exposure to the truth anti-smoking campaign and youth's beliefs and attitudes about cigarette companies and their intent to smoke.
Study findings showed that exposure to the truth campaign was positively associated with increased anti-tobacco beliefs and attitudes among youth overall.
Given that different truth campaign messages appealed to youth based on their race/ethnicity, the study authors assert that this issue be considered when developing future campaigns to reach youth with behavior change messages.

Monitoring the Future Study – December 2008

Johnston LD, O’Malley PM, Bachman JG, Schulenberg JE. Monitoring the Future national results on adolescent drug use: Overview of key findings, 2008 (NIH Publication No. 09-7401). Bethesda, MD: National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2009.

The annual 2008 Monitoring the Future study measuring youth tobacco use prevalence found current cigarette use among youth to be at historically low levels.
The study found that since 1996, when 30-day (current) prevalence of cigarette use peaked in grades 8 and 10, smoking rates among 8th graders decreased by more than two-thirds to 6.8 percent and smoking rates among 10th graders dropped by more than half to 12.3 percent.
Since 1997, when smoking prevalence peaked among 12th graders, current smoking dropped by nearly half to 20.4 percent. eport investigators cited an increase in anti-smoking advertising reaching children, specifically truth, as one of the factors in the decline. ** From the Monitoring Future press release: Johnston, L. D., O'Malley, P. M., Bachman, J. G., & Schulenberg, J. E. (2008, December 11). National press release, "More good news on teen smoking: Rates at or near record lows." University of Michigan News Service, Ann Arbor, 23 pp.

Health Education Research Report – January 2008

Farrelly MC, Davis KC, Duke J, Messeri P. Sustaining ‘truth’: changes in youth tobacco attitudes and smoking intentions after 3 years of a national anti-smoking campaign. Health Education Research, 2008, Advance Access published 17 January 2008.

According to this study, teens who are exposed to the truth campaign are more likely to harbor critical feelings towards the tobacco industry and are less likely to have intentions to smoke in the future.
In addition, researchers found that teens who saw Philip Morris’ “Think Don’t Smoke” advertising campaign had more favorable beliefs and attitudes toward tobacco companies.
Meanwhile, teens who were aware of the truth campaign were twice as likely to say they did not intend to smoke in the future.
From the winter of 2000 through fall of 2003, approximately 70 percent of teens were aware of the campaign.

Monitoring the Future Study – December 2007

Johnston LD, O’Malley PM, Bachman JG, Schulenberg JE. Monitoring the Future national results on adolescent drug use: Overview of key findings, 2007 (NIH Publication No. 08-6418). Bethesda, MD: National Institute on Drug Abuse, 2008.

The annual 2007 Monitoring the Future study showed 30-day (current) smoking prevalence among 8th graders has declined by two-thirds to 7.1 percent since its peak in 1996.
Among 10th graders, current smoking dropped by more than half to 14.0 percent.
For 12th graders, whose 30-day prevalence peaked in 1997, current smoking rates fell by 41% in 2007, the same level it was in 2006.

RTI Prevalence Study – September 2007

Davis KC, Nonnemaker JM, Farrelly MC. Association Between National Smoking Prevention Campaigns and Perceived Smoking Prevalence Among Youth in the United States. Journal of Adolescent Health, 2007; 41: 430-436.

In this study, researchers found that the truth campaign may be changing teens' perceptions about how common smoking is among their peers.
Findings showed teens exposed to the truth campaign have lower perceived smoking prevalence among their peers while teens with less exposure to the campaign believed smoking was more common among people their age.
The finding is good news for the truth campaign because teens' perception of the prevalence of peer smoking has been shown to predict future smoking.

Institute of Medicine – May 2007

IOM (Institute of Medicine). 2007. Ending the tobacco problem: A blueprint for the nation. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.

This landmark report found that the United States must implement strategies that effectively reduce and prevent smoking and combine those efforts with a changed regulatory and policy landscape to fight the nation’s number-one cause of preventable death: tobacco-related disease.
The report, presented to Congress, specifically mentions the truth campaign, and concludes that “a national, youth-oriented media campaign should be funded on an ongoing basis as a permanent component of the nation’s strategy to reduce tobacco use.”

American Journal of Public Health – May 2005

Farrelly MC, Davis KC, Haviland ML, Messeri P, Healton CG. Evidence of a Dose-Response Relationship Between “truth” Anti-smoking Ads and Youth Smoking Prevalence. American Journal of Public Health, 2005; 95(3): 425-431.

This evaluation of the national truth campaign found that approximately 22 percent of the overall decline in youth smoking between 1999 -2002 is directly attributable to truth.
This equates to 300,000 fewer youth smokers in 2002 as a result of the campaign.