Investigating the scope of tobacco industry direct mail and its impact on smoking

描述（由申请人提供）：烟草行业直邮的范围和影响，一个经常使用的行业营销策略，迄今为止受到烟草控制的关注和研究有限。这方面的研究一直受到直接邮件作为一个非公开的营销来源，能见度有限，直接观察其对收件人的吸烟行为的影响的困难，以及缺乏现有的数据来确定其规模和重要性的性质。作为一种直接面向消费者的营销技术，直邮直接到达该行业广泛的邮件列表上的那些人的家中，因此在很大程度上在公众的视线之外运作，并在烟草控制，公共卫生和监管机构的雷达下运作。直邮的影响力和它所带来的激励（例如，优惠券、礼品）对吸烟行为的影响很容易观察到。迄今为止，没有国家一级的数据，旨在确定其在烟草使用行为中的作用的研究几乎不存在。该提案响应了NIH计划公告PA-09-130，并描述了一项计划，以解决有关直邮营销流行及其对烟草行为影响的知识基础方面的差距。因此，我们将：1）进行焦点小组，以了解吸烟者对烟草业直邮的看法，为调查的开展提供信息，2）开发和完善一个调查工具，该工具将进行认知测试，以评估直邮的参与程度及其对吸烟行为的潜在影响，（3）开展具有全国代表性的人口-基于对成年吸烟者的网络调查，以确定直邮收据的流行程度并了解其对吸烟行为的影响，以及4）根据对所收集的定性和定量数据的分析，确定可能的干预领域和/或具体的应对策略，以应对直邮对烟草使用行为的影响。因此，这项拟议的研究的意义是它的潜力，以产生更好地了解直邮和它是如何被认为是至关重要的通知和指导反营销策略的收件人。这些知识将有助于为进一步研究和采取措施消除烟草业直邮的影响提供证据基础。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The scope and impact of tobacco industry direct mail, a frequently utilized industry marketing strategy, has thus far received limited attention and research from tobacco control. Research in this area has been hampered by the very nature of direct mail as a non-public source of marketing with limited visibility, the difficulty of directly observing its influence on receivers' smoking behaviors, and by the lack of existing data establishing its magnitude and importance. As a direct-to-consumer marketing technique, direct mail goes straight to the homes of those on the industry's extensive mailing lists and so operates largely out of the sight of the general public and under the radar of tobacco control, public health, and regulatory agencies. Nor is the influence of direct mail and the incentives it carries (e.g., coupons, gifts) on smoking behavior easily observed. To date, no national-level data are available and research aimed at establishing its role in tobacco use behavior has been almost nonexistent. This proposal responds to NIH Program Announcement, PA-09-130 and describes a plan to address gaps in the knowledge base regarding prevalence of direct mail marketing and its influence on tobacco behaviors. Accordingly, we will: 1) conduct focus groups to understand smokers' perceptions of tobacco industry direct mail to inform survey development, 2) develop and refine a survey instrument, which will undergo conduct cognitive testing, to assess participation in direct mail and its potential impact on smoking behavior, 3) conduct a nationally representative population-based web survey of adult cigarette smokers to determine the prevalence of direct mail receipt and understand its impact on smoking behavior, and 4) identify areas of possible intervention and/or specific counter strategies to address the influence of direct mail on tobacco use behavior based on the analysis of qualitative and quantitative data collected. Thus, the significance of this proposed research is its potential to generate a better understanding of direct mail and how it is perceived by its recipients which is vital to informing and directing counter marketing strategies. This knowledge will contribute to the evidence base for further research and initiatives to counter the influence of tobacco industry direct mail.