Death of a salesman

First paragraph: In December 2012 Australia became the first jurisdiction to mandate plain (or standardised) packaging for tobacco products. Many governments have been looking on with interest, anxious to learn if this is also the next step forward in their own efforts to tackle the harms caused by tobacco. This special issue begins to answer this question by presenting a series of studies which provide an initial evaluation of the policy. What have been the early impacts of plain packaging on young people and adult smokers? And are there any unintended consequences—has it reduced prices, for instance, or encouraged illicit tobacco use

Impact of a ban on the open display of tobacco products in retail outlets on never smoking youth in the UK:findings from a repeat cross-sectional survey before, during and after implementation

Background In the UK, a ban on the open display of tobacco products at the point of sale (POS) was phased in between 2012 and 2015. We explored any impact of the ban on youth before, during and after implementation. Methods A repeat cross-sectional in-home survey with young people aged 11-16 years old in the UK was conducted preban (2011, n=1373), mid-ban (2014, n=1205) and postban (2016, n=1213). The analysis focuses on the never-smokers in the sample (n=2953 in total). Preban, we quantified the associations of noticing cigarettes displayed at POS and cigarette brand awareness with smoking susceptibility. We measured any change in noticing cigarettes displayed at POS, cigarette brand awareness and smoking susceptibility between preban, mid-ban and postban. Postban, we assessed support for a display ban, perceived appeal of cigarettes and perceived acceptability of smoking as a result of closed displays. Results Preban, noticing cigarettes displayed at POS (adjusted OR [AOR]=1.97, 95% CI 1.30 to 2.98) and higher brand awareness (AOR=1.15, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.29) were positively associated with smoking susceptibility. The mean number of brands recalled declined from 0.97 preban to 0.69 postban (p < 0.001). Smoking susceptibility decreased from 28% preban to 23% mid-ban and 18% postban (p for trend < 0.001). Postban, 90% of never-smokers supported the display ban and indicated that it made cigarettes seem unappealing (77%) and made smoking seem unacceptable (87%). Conclusions Both partial and full implementation of a display ban were followed by a reduction in smoking susceptibility among adolescents, which may be driven by decreases in brand awareness

Towards evidence-based marketing: The case of childhood obesity

Contentious commodities such as tobacco, alcohol and fatty foods are bringing marketing under scrutiny from consumers and policymakers. Yet there is little agreement on whether marketing is harmful to society. Systematic review (SR), a methodology derived from clinical medicine, offers marketers a tool for providing resolution and allowing policymakers to proceed with greater confidence. This article describes how SR methods were applied for the first time to a marketing problem -- the effects of food promotion to children. The review withstood scrutiny and its findings were formally ratified by government bodies and policymakers, demonstrating that SR methods can transfer from clinical research to marketing

Simulations of the galaxy population constrained by observations from z=3 to the present day: implications for galactic winds and the fate of their ejecta

We apply Monte Carlo Markov Chain (MCMC) methods to large-scale simulations of galaxy formation in a LambdaCDM cosmology in order to explore how star formation and feedback are constrained by the observed luminosity and stellar mass functions of galaxies. We build models jointly on the Millennium and Millennium-II simulations, applying fast sampling techniques which allow observed galaxy abundances over the ranges 7<log(M*/Msun)<12 and z=0 to z=3 to be used simultaneously as constraints in the MCMC analysis. When z=0 constraints alone are imposed, we reproduce the results of previous modelling by Guo et al. (2012), but no single set of parameters can reproduce observed galaxy abundances at all redshifts simultaneously, reflecting the fact that low-mass galaxies form too early and thus are overabundant at high redshift in this model. The data require the efficiency with which galactic wind ejecta are reaccreted to vary with redshift and halo mass quite differently than previously assumed, but in a similar way as in some recent hydrodynamic simulations of galaxy formation. We propose a specific model in which reincorporation timescales vary inversely with halo mass and are independent of redshift. This produces an evolving galaxy population which fits observed abundances as a function of stellar mass, B- and K-band luminosity at all redshifts simultaneously. It also produces a significant improvement in two other areas where previous models were deficient. It leads to present day dwarf galaxy populations which are younger, bluer, more strongly star-forming and more weakly clustered on small scales than before, although the passive fraction of faint dwarfs remains too high

Public health or social impacts? A qualitative analysis of attitudes toward the smoke-free legislation in Scotland

Introduction: Introduction of smoke-free legislation presents a unique opportunity to study how population-level interventions can challenge existing smoking norms. Our study examined support and opposition to the Scottish legislation and ascertained the relative importance of social and health factors in shaping attitudes among bar customers. Methods: Repeat (pre-/post-legislation) recorded and transcribed semistructured interviews with customers (n = 67/62) of eight community bars in contrasting settings were conducted, and data were analyzed thematically. Results: While the legislation was marketed primarily in terms of gains to public and individual health, supportive and opposing responses to the legislation tended to be framed around libertarian and practical factors. Attitudes tended to be stable across both waves of data collection. Discussion: It is concluded that reasons for smoking were not challenged by promotion of the legislation. In addition to a focus on health gains, social marketing of smoke-free legislation and initiatives may therefore benefit from a stronger focus on social and contextual effects of such policies

The influence of branding on adolescent smoking behaviour: exploring the mediating role of image and attitudes.

Enhancing our understanding of the possible impact that tobacco marketing has on adolescent smoking continues to be an important issue for those involved in the marketing and public health domains. Adolescence is recognised as a time of fundamental change. Commercial brands traditionally achieve their ‘youth credibility’ as a result of the carefully crafted, symbiotic practices of awareness generation and image formation. Evidence exists on how tobacco advertisers create branded properties using traditional forms of advertising. Since 2003, such advertising has been comprehensively banned. This study investigates the continuing effects of tobacco marketing communications in a post advertising era. In this article, we examine the process of brand awareness, brand image, attitude formation and intention to smoke by adolescents. Based on 926 respondents from a UK wide study, we build a conceptual model to assess the inter-relationships between these constructs. Our model also examines the potential influences of peers on adolescents’ attitude toward smoking and intention to smoke. Results based on structural equation modelling show strong influence of branding on both attitude and intention. These finding have important implications for government anti-smoking policies particularly in regard to generic packaging and point of sale displays