Herd immunity versus self-interest motives and norms effects on influenza vaccination intention.

Objective: Promoting vaccine uptake is challenging. This research aimed to experimentally test the effect of communication strategies on influenza vaccine uptake intention. We hypothesized that the effect of descriptive norm level (10%-50%-90% of others vaccinated) on intention would vary according to whether the benefits are focused on the individual (self-interest motives) or others (herd-immunity motives).

Psychological determinants of consumption of reusable containers for takeaway food and drinks.

Using food and drink disposable containers has heavy environmental and economic consequences. The widespread adoption of reusable containers is a challenge that requires understanding the psychological determinants and barriers of the behaviour. Two studies were conducted: one with a sample from the general public (study 1,  = 302) and one with respondents having access to a reusable container system at work (study 2,  = 737).

How to increase first-time donors' returns? The postdonation letter's content can make a difference.

Background: Retention of first-time donors is pivotal for blood collection centers. The present study built on research showing the importance of donor identity among regular donors and sought to compare the effectiveness of various communication strategies on return rate.

Study Design And Methods: Postal letters were sent to a large sample of first-time whole blood donors (N = 1219) a few weeks following their first donation.

Sexual and Reproductive Health: How Can Situational Judgment Tests Help Assess the Norm and Identify Target Groups? A Field Study in Sierra Leone.

Sexual and reproductive health is a challenge worldwide, and much progress is needed to reach the relevant UN Sustainable Development Goals. This paper presents cross-sectional data collected in Sierra Leone on sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), family planning (FP), child, early and forced marriage (CEFM), and female genital mutilation (FGM) using an innovative method of measurement: situational judgment tests (SJTs), as a subset of questions within a larger survey tool. For the SJTs, respondents saw hypothetical scenarios on these themes and had to indicate how they would react.

Does a Low-Cost Act of Support Produce Slacktivism or Commitment? Prosocial and Impression-Management Motives as Moderators.

Increase or decrease in subsequent action following a low-cost act of support for a cause can be predicted from both commitment theory and the slacktivism effect. In this paper, we report on three studies that tested type of motivation (prosocial vs. impression management) as a moderator of the effect of an initial act of support [wearing a badge (S1) and writing a slogan (S2 and 3)] has on support for blood donation.

Fear appeals to promote better health behaviors: an investigation of potential mediators.

Fear appeals are widely used in health communication, despite conflicting views on their effectiveness. Unresolved issues include possible mediation mechanisms and the effect of defensive reactions aimed at controlling a perceived danger. The present study compared the impact of three versions of an existing online course on how to prevent noncommunicable diseases.

Cessation rates from a national collective social network smoking cessation programme: results from the 'I quit smoking with Facebook on March 21' Swiss programme.

Programmes for collective smoking cessation, based on the British model Stoptober, are proposed by public health units in many countries. There is a need for data estimating the rate at which participants in these programmes are successful in quitting smoking. We report a prospective study carried out as part of a large-scale collective cessation programme conducted in Switzerland in 2017.

Socio-demographic and motivational correlates of smoking status at term and postpartum.

Background: Tobacco consumption during pregnancy has consequences for pregnant women and their fetus, as well as during the postnatal period. Many women stop their tobacco consumption during pregnancy, but statistics vary about the exact proportion, and a non-negligible number of them are still smoking at term. Moreover, tobacco relapse after birth is frequent.

Social Psychological Correlates of Protective Behaviours in the COVID-19 Outbreak: Evidence and Recommendations from a Nationally Representative Sample.

Background: A clear picture of people's adoption of protective behaviours, and a thorough understanding of psychosocial correlates in the context of contagious diseases such as COVID-19, is essential for the development of communication strategies, and can contribute to the fight against epidemics.

Methods: In this paper, we report a survey on the adoption of the recommended protective behaviours before and during the epidemic. We also assessed demographic correlates, and beliefs (towards COVID-19 and protective behaviours, towards SARS-CoV-2 transmission, social dilemma variables, and perceived external cues) of a representative sample of British residents.

Do Environmental Prompts Work the Same for Everyone? A Test of Environmental Attitudes as a Moderator.

The extant literature has focused either on personal variables or on situational factors to explain pro-environmental behavior despite several calls to integrate both. The present research addresses this integration call by testing the interaction between environmental attitudes and situational prompts on pro-environmental behavior. Three experimental studies manipulate the presence/absence of pro-environmental prompts, measure environmental attitudes, and investigate the effect of both variables on behavior.

Act local but don't think too global: The impact of ecological goal level on behavior.

Growing awareness of humanity's impact on the environment raises the question of how best to encourage pro-environmental actions. Numerous campaigns have been created to convince people to adopt environmentally friendly everyday behaviors, with varying success. The difficulty may be due, at least in part, to the huge gap between these small individual actions and the high-level goals, such as "saving the planet," often used as incentives.