Standardised packs and larger health warnings: visual attention and perceptions among Colombian smokers and non-smokers.

Aims To measure how cigarette packaging (standardised packaging and branded packaging) and health warning size affect visual attention and pack preferences among Colombian smokers and non-smokers. Design To explore visual attention, we used an eye-tracking experiment where non-smokers, weekly smokers and daily smokers were shown cigarette packs varying in warning size (30%-pictorial on top of the text, 30%-pictorial and text side-by-side, 50%, 70%) and packaging (standardised packaging, branded packaging). We used a discrete choice experiment (DCE) to examine the impact of warning size, packaging and brand name on preferences to try, taste perceptions and perceptions of harm. Setting Eye-tracking laboratory, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia. Participants Participants (n=175) were 18 to 40 years old. Measurements For the eye-tracking experiment, our primary outcome measure was the number of fixations toward the health warning compared with the branding. For the DCE, outcome measures were preferences to try, taste perceptions and harm perceptions. Findings We observed greater visual attention to warning labels on standardised versus branded packages (F[3,167]=22.87, P<0.001) and when warnings were larger (F[9,161]=147.17, P<0.001); as warning size increased, the difference in visual attention to warnings between standardised and branded packaging decreased (F[9,161]=4.44, P<0.001). Non-smokers visually attended toward the warnings more than smokers, but as warning size increased these differences decreased (F[6,334]=2.92, P=0.009). For the DCE, conditional trials showed that increasing the warning size from 30% to 70% reduced preferences to try (odds ratio [OR]=0.48, 95% CI = [0.42,0.54], P<0.001), taste perceptions (OR=0.61, 95% CI = [0.54,0.68], P<0.001); and increased harm perceptions (OR=0.78, 95% CI = [0.76,0.80], P<0.001). Compared with branded packaging, standardised packaging reduced our DCE outcome measures with ORs ranging from OR=0.25 (95% CI = [0.17,0.38], P<0.001) to OR=0.79 (95% CI = [0.67,0.93], P<0.001) across two brands. These effects were more pronounced among non-smokers, males and younger participants. Unconditional trials showed similar results. Conclusions Standardised cigarette packaging and larger health warnings appear to decrease positive pack perceptions and have the potential to reduce the demand for cigarette products in Colombia

The role of aspects of the environment uncorrelated with the consequence in the establishment of stimulus control in visual discrimination tasks

Pelo menos uma parte do ambiente no qual uma resposta produz uma consequência ganha controle sobre a resposta. Geralmente, a parte que ganha o controle correlaciona com a consequência. Partes não correlacionadas podem dificultar ou facilitar a aquisição do controle por as partes correlacionadas e até mesmo ganhar controle por si mesmas. Esta tese trata sobre o papel que partes do ambiente não correlacionadas com a consequência têm no estabelecimento de controle de estímulos. O capítulo 1 é uma revisão sobre o estabelecimento de controle com ênfase nas propriedades do ambiente. O Capítulo 2 descreve dois experimentos que avaliaram controle por porções do ambiente não correlacionadas com a consequência. Experimentos anteriores com uma tarefa de reconhecimento sugeriram controle por partes de estímulos com forma humana não correlacionadas com a consequência. Os resultados do Experimento 2 mostraram com uma tarefa operante que o teste de reconhecimento mede controle por aspectos do ambiente não correlacionadas com a consequência e que o controle de porções não correlacionadas podem dificultar ou até impedir o controle pelas partes correlacionadas. O Capítulo 3 descreve três experimentos que avaliaram a influência da forma dos estímulos no controle por estímulos não correlacionadas. Os resultados mostraram que porções não correlacionadas de estímulos em formato humano tinham uma chance maior de controlar o responder do que estímulos com os mesmos componentes em formato não-humano. O capítulo 4 descreve três experimentos que avaliaram controle por porções do ambiente não correlacionadas com a consequência com cruzes formadas por quadrados que tinham contato uns aos outros ou que tinham uma pequena distância entre eles. Os resultados mostraram que partes dos estímulos formados por quadrados desconectados ganhou controle sobre a responder, mas não ganharam controle quando as cruzes estavam formadas por estímulos unidosAt least part of the environment in which a response produces a consequence always gains control over the response. As a rule, the portion that gains control correlates with the consequence. Uncorrelated portions may hinder or facilitate the acquisition of control by the correlated ones and even gain control by themselves. The present dissertation deals with the role that portions of the environment uncorrelated with the consequence play on the establishment of stimulus control. Chapter 1 is a review on the establishment of control with emphases on the properties of the environment. Chapter 2 describes two experiments that evaluated control by portions of the environment uncorrelated with the consequence. Previous experiments with a recognition task suggested control over responding by portions of human-like stimuli uncorrelated with the consequence. Results from Experiment 2 demonstrated with an operant task that the recognition task measures control by aspects of the environment uncorrelated with the consequence and that control by uncorrelated portions of the stimuli may hinder or prevent control by the correlated portions. Chapter 3 describes three experiments that evaluated the influence of the stimulis shape on the acquisition of control by uncorrelated features. Results showed that uncorrelated portions of stimuli in human format had a greater chance of gaining control over responding than stimuli with the same components in nonhuman format. Chapter 4 describe two experiments that evaluated control by portions of the environment uncorrelated with the consequence with crosses formed by squares that touched each other or that had a small distance between them. Results showed that portions of the stimuli formed by disconnected squares gained control over responding, but they did not gain control when the crosses were formed by united stimul

A cross-sectional online survey of the impact of new tobacco health warnings in Colombia

This was an online cross-sectional survey that examined the rate of market saturation and the noticeability of new Colombian tobacco warnings among smokers over the implementation period in Colombia (Wave 1 – pre-implementation, Wave 2 – 12 months post-implementation). We also explored smokers’ negative affect towards warnings, cognitions related to smoking, knowledge regarding health risks of smoking, perceived severity and likelihood of harm from smoking and quit intentions across the survey waves and responses to each of the new warnings in terms of negative affect, believability, cognitions related to harm, avoidance, reactance and perceived message effectiveness.Data were collected via the online survey platform Qualtrics. Adult smokers (defined as ≥ 18 years of age and having smoked at least 100 cigarettes in their lifetime and currently smoking at least one cigarette per week) were recruited from the staff and students at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and from the general public. The research team used existing mailing lists to contact members of the university across eight cities in Colombia and attended student classes to encourage students to complete the surveys. We recruited participants from the general population through social media, word of mouth and posters in public spaces. Data were collected at Time 1, prior to the introduction of the new health warnings in Colombia in 2018 (n=1985, 72% male), and at Time 2, twelve-months post-introduction (n=1572, 69% male). During data collection participants were first shown an information statement before completing a tick-box consent page. All text and questions were presented in Spanish. Participants completed screening questions and those who were ineligible were taken to the end of the study. Eligible participants completed demographic questions, responses to warnings on packs, knowledge of health risks and attitudes towards smoking. An attention check item was included in this section (Please select the strongly agree option to let us know that you read all of the survey instructions). Each of the six new warnings were presented individually on screen in a randomised order, and participants completed questions about each warning. After reading a debriefing page, participants who wished to be entered into the prize draw were directed to a second survey. Participants who participated in the first time were re-contacted at the second time to ask if they would like to participate again.Data were collected using the online survey platform Qualtrics https://www.qualtrics.com Data analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS Statistics 22.Each variable is titled and labelled in the SPSS datasheet. In order to examine market spread of new warnings over the implementation period we calculated percentages of participants in the two times who reported being aware of seeing each of the six new warnings. The internal consistency of the latent constructs (e.g. negative affect, cognitive elaboration) were assessed using Cronbach’s alpha. All latent constructs achieved acceptable to good internal consistency and latent variables were calculated by taking a mean of the individual items (see Supplementary Materials - Table 2)

Cognición y conducta en la falacia de las tasas de base

La economía del comportamiento ha aplicado conceptos de la psicología relacionados con el análisis cognoscitivo, que le da poca importancia a los efectos del ambiente. En contraste, para el análisis experimental de la conducta, el ambiente es central, y por ello emplea conceptos como programa de refuerzo y control de estímulos. En este documento se presenta el debate cognoscitivo-conductual alrededor del comportamiento de elección. Además, se contrastan sus métodos con dos experimentos sobre la falacia de las tasas de base en los que se varían las características del estímulo (verbal y no verbal). El trabajo concluye que esta falacia se produce a menor escala cuando hay menos estímulos irrelevantes

A cross-sectional online survey of the impact of new tobacco health warnings in Colombia

This was an online cross-sectional survey that examined the rate of market saturation and the noticeability of new Colombian tobacco warnings among smokers over the implementation period in Colombia (Wave 1 – pre-implementation, Wave 2 – 12 months post-implementation). We also explored smokers’ negative affect towards warnings, cognitions related to smoking, knowledge regarding health risks of smoking, perceived severity and likelihood of harm from smoking and quit intentions across the survey waves and responses to each of the new warnings in terms of negative affect, believability, cognitions related to harm, avoidance, reactance and perceived message effectiveness

Standardised packs and larger health warnings: visual attention and perceptions among Colombian smokers and non-smokers

This was an experimental laboratory that examined the impact of cigarettes pack attributes of branding (branded vs. standardised packaging) and health warning size (30%, 50% vs. 70%) on visual attention, and on preferences to try and judgements of taste and of harm, among Colombian smokers and non-smokers

Standardised packs and larger health warnings: visual attention and perceptions among Colombian smokers and non-smokers

This was an experimental laboratory that examined the impact of cigarettes pack attributes of branding (branded vs. standardised packaging) and health warning size (30%, 50% vs. 70%) on visual attention, and on preferences to try and judgements of taste and of harm, among Colombian smokers and non-smokers

A cross-sectional online survey of the impact of new tobacco health warnings in Colombia

This was an online cross-sectional survey that examined the rate of market saturation and the noticeability of new Colombian tobacco warnings among smokers over the implementation period in Colombia (Wave 1 – pre-implementation, Wave 2 – 12 months post-implementation). We also explored smokers’ negative affect towards warnings, cognitions related to smoking, knowledge regarding health risks of smoking, perceived severity and likelihood of harm from smoking and quit intentions across the survey waves and responses to each of the new warnings in terms of negative affect, believability, cognitions related to harm, avoidance, reactance and perceived message effectiveness