NURS 6700 week 4 Discussion Paper
Randomized Control Study Design
A randomized control trial is a experimental study design that randomly assigns participants in an experimental group or control group, with the expected difference in both groups of the outcome variable being studied. Electronic cigarettes (e-cigarette) have become popular among people who are trying to quit smoking. E-cigarette manufactures are required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to place warning labels on their advertising (Mays, Smith, Johnson, Tercyak, & Niaura, 2016). In terms of future regulatory requirements there is limited data on the effects of the warnings. This study examined the effects of e-cigarette warnings on perceptions of e-cigarettes and cigarettes and other cognitive precursors to tobacco use among young adult non-smokers (Mays, Smith, Johnson, Tercyak, & Niaura, 2016). NURS 6700 week 4 Discussion Paper
Study population & Data collection methods
The participants in this study were 436 non-smoking adults from the age of 18 to 30, who were recruited through a internet-based source for an online experiment. Participants completed pre-exposure measures of demographics, tobacco use, and other relevant constructs and were randomized to view 1 of 9 e-cigarette stimuli in a 3 (Ad/Warning condition: Ad Only, Ad with Warning, Warning Only) x 3 (E-cigarette brand: Blu, MarkTen, Vuse) design (Mays, Smith, Johnson, Tercyak, & Niaura, 2016). After viewing each stimuli and the three ads the participants reported their perceptions and intention to use e-cigarette. The Ad Only and Ad with Warning condition group participants were required to complete a heat-mapping task to assess if the ads captured their attention.
Outcome measures
After being exposed to the warning label ads, participants were required to provide a response on a four-point scale (1 = not at all, 2 = slightly, 3 = somewhat, 4 = very harmful) on the perceived harmfulness of the e-cigarette additive. The measurement of perceived harmfulness comparing e-cigarettes to cigarettes was measured on a five-point scale (1 = much less, 2 = less, 3 = about the same, 4 = more, 5 = much more). And thoughts about using e-cigarettes in the next year were based on a four-point response scale (1 = definitely will not, 4 = definitely will). NURS 6700 week 4 Discussion Paper
Results and conclusions
Results found that participants in the warning only condition perceived e-cigarette harm and addictiveness to be greater than the Ad only and Ad with warning. Participants in the warning only condition also felt that the perceived harm and addictiveness of e-cigarettes were relative to cigarettes. And participants in the warning only condition reported increased thoughts about not using e-cigarettes in comparison to the other conditions.
Ethical issues associated with the study
There are many limitations to this study. Because all data was self-reported there is a potential for bias. Also, generalizability of data is limited due to the method of choosing participants that were young adults with internet access only. Future studies are needed to understand how warning labels on e-cigarettes affect the whole population.NURS 6700 week 4 Discussion Paper