The gap between attitudes and use in prediction of effect of an online smoking cessation program.
This article describes an investigation of the effect of attitude toward and use of different components of an online smoking cessation program on stage transition based on the Transtheoretical Model. Participants were 299 users of the StopSmokingCoach, an online smoking cessation program, who completed an online questionnaire concerning their attitudes toward the program and its components within 6 months after registration. These attitude measurements and participants' actual use of the program components were linked to stage transitions of these users. Attitudes toward the StopSmokingCoach and its components were positive; however, only one of these attitude measurements (instructiveness of e-mail tips) predicted actual stage transitions. In contrast, frequency/intensity of use of the coach and 3 of its components (advices, forum, and personal charts, but not the diary, tips, or decisional balance) was significantly related to stage transitions. These results suggest that users do not need to have positive attitudes toward a health program in order to achieve behavioral change. Use of some, but not all program components appears to be more important.
Center for Social and Cultural Psychology, University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium. meeussen@psy.kuleuven.be
Loes
L
Meeussen
Claudia
C
Put
Jeroen
J
Meganck
Steven
S
De Peuter
D000328:Adult; D001294:Attitude to Health; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012907:Smoking / Q000523:psychology; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods*; D000074606:Smoking Prevention