Brian A. Primack|Erika L. Douglas|Stephanie R. Land|Elizabeth Miller|Michael J. Fine
Comparison of Media Literacy and Usual Education to Prevent Tobacco Use: A Cluster?Randomized Trial
University of Pittsburgh
media literacy programs shown potential reduction adolescent tobacco use aimed determine antismoking media literacy curriculum improves students media literacy affects factors related adolescent smokingwe recruited 1170 9thgrade students 64 classrooms 3 public urban high schools students randomized classroom media literacy curriculum versus standard educational program intenttotreat analysis used multilevel modeling determine changes study outcomes associated curricular intervention controlling baseline student covariates clustering students within classroomsamong participants mean age 145 years 51 male significant differences baseline characteristics groups smoking media literacy changed among intervention participants compared control participants 024 vs 008 p 001 compared controls intervention students exhibited greater reduction perceived prevalence smoking 140 vs 46 p 001 among initially susceptible smoking intervention participants commonly reverted nonsusceptible postintervention 24 vs 16 p 08a schoolbased media literacy curriculum effective standard educational program teaching media literacy improving perceptions true prevalence smoking among adolescents