title: Applying Quantitative Approaches to the Formative Evaluation of Antismoking Campaign Messages.
abstract: This article shares an in-depth summary of a formative evaluation that used quantitative data to inform the development and selection of promotional ads for the antismoking communication component of a social marketing campaign. A foundational survey provided cross-sectional data to identify beliefs about quitting smoking that campaign messages should target, as well as beliefs to avoid. Pretesting draft ads against quantitative indicators of message effectiveness further facilitated the selection and rejection of final campaign ads. Finally, we consider lessons learned from the process of balancing quantitative methods and judgment to make formative decisions about more and less promising persuasive messages for campaigns.
authors.affiliation: Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Parvanta
authors.affiliation: Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gibson
authors.affiliation: Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Heather
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Forquer
authors.affiliation: Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Dina
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Shapiro-Luft
authors.affiliation: Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Lorraine
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dean
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Derek
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Freres
authors.affiliation: Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Caryn
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lerman
authors.affiliation: Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Giridhar
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mallya
authors.affiliation: Texas Department of State Health Services, Austin, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Mihaela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Moldovan-Johnson
authors.affiliation: Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Andy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tan
authors.affiliation: Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cappella
authors.affiliation: Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hornik
keywords: Formative Evaluation; Monitoring and Evaluation; Tobacco Cessation