title: Evaluation of a Social Norms Approach to a Suicide Prevention Campaign.
abstract: Suicide is a leading cause of death for college-aged youth, and university counseling centers (UCC) strive to educate students about mental health issues and available campus services. The current research evaluates a college campus social norms campaign that used both peer and celebrity sources to promote help seeking among college students as a suicide prevention strategy. Postcampaign surveys of this quasi-experiment (n = 391) revealed that compared to students in the control neighborhood condition, students exposed to the campaign messages in the experimental neighborhood conditions were more likely to perceive students would refer a friend to the UCC and more likely to visit the UCC for a mental health concern. Students living in the intervention neighborhood with a peer message source reported a greater willingness to refer friends to the UCC compared to those who lived in the celebrity and control neighborhoods. Regardless of condition, students who reported seeing UCC messages reported greater effects than those who reported not viewing the messages (e.g., greater intentions to seek help and to talk to others about the UCC). Results of this study are discussed within a social norms framework and support the need for continued exposure to campaign messages to impact health outcomes.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Communication , Michigan State University , East Lansing , Michigan , USA.
authors.forename: Kami J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Silk
authors.affiliation: b Brian Lamb School of Communication , Purdue University , West Lafayette , Indiana , USA.
authors.forename: Evan K
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Perrault
authors.affiliation: c Department of Communication , Berry College , Mount Berry , Georgia , USA.
authors.forename: Samantha A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Nazione
authors.affiliation: d Department of Public Health , Seattle and King County , Seattle , Washington , USA.
authors.forename: Kristin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pace
authors.affiliation: e Associate Dean of Students for Personal Success and Wellness, Pomona College , Claremont , California , USA.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Collins-Eaglin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005197:Famous Persons; D005260:Female; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000379:methods*; D000066505:Help-Seeking Behavior; D006801:Humans; D033182:Intention; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D015397:Program Evaluation; D066262:Social Norms; D013333:Student Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014495:Universities; D055815:Young Adult; D000092864:Suicide Prevention