title: Decreases in tanning behaviors following a short online survey: Potential for prevention?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To date, tanning prevention programs have led to limited success. The aim of the present study was to investigate potential unexpected prevention effects of completing an online survey focused on tanning attitudes, behaviors, and knowledge among female college tanners.
  
  
  METHODS
  A sample of 92 female undergraduate students from the USA, mean age = 20.09, SD = 1.41 years, who engaged in indoor tanning completed an online survey assessing awareness of tanning-related health risks, appearance-based motivations to tan and not to tan, media literacy related to tanning marketing, and tanning behaviors in 2013. Four months later, participants were invited to complete a follow-up survey assessing tanning intentions and behaviors since completing the initial survey.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Fifty-one participants (55%) completed the follow-up questions, of whom 43 (84.3%) reported having decreased or ceased engaging in indoor tanning. In addition participants provided comments indicating that completing the survey had lead to decreases in their tanning behaviors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study presents novel and compelling support for using brief online surveys for decreasing health-risk behaviors such as sunbed use. Such measures are extremely cost-effective and easy to disseminate and implement. Replication and extension of these findings are warranted.
authors: Department of Counseling and Applied Educational Psychology, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 02115 Boston, USA; Laboratoire de Stress Traumatique, Universite Paul Sabatier, EA 4560, Toulouse, France.
authors: Rachel F
authors: RF
authors: Rodgers
authors: Department of Counseling and Applied Educational Psychology, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 02115 Boston, USA.
authors: Debra L
authors: DL
authors: Franko
authors: Public Health Advocacy Institute, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 02115 Boston, USA.
authors: Mark
authors: M
authors: Gottlieb
authors: Public Health Advocacy Institute, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 02115 Boston, USA; School of Law, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, 02115 Boston, USA.
authors: Richard
authors: R
authors: Daynard
keywords: Prevention; Students; Tanning