TY - JOUR
T1 - Evaluation of the acceptance journeys social marketing campaign to reduce homophobia
AU - Hull, Shawnika J.
AU - Davis, Catasha R.
AU - Hollander, Gary
AU - Gasiorowicz, Mari
AU - Jeffries, William L.
AU - Gray, Simone
AU - Bertolli, Jeanne
AU - Mohr, Anneke
PY - 2017/1
Y1 - 2017/1
N2 - Objectives.To evaluate the effectiveness of the Acceptance Journeys social marketing campaign to reduce homophobia in the Black community in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Methods. We assessed the campaign's effectiveness using a rolling cross-sectional survey. Data were collected annually online between 2011 and 2015. Each year, a unique sample of Black and White adults, aged 30 years and older, were surveyed in the treatment city (Milwaukee) and in 2 comparison cities that did not have antihomophobia campaigns (St. Louis, MO, and Cleveland, OH; for total sample, n = 3592). Results. Black self-identification and Milwaukee residence were significantly associated with exposure to the campaign, suggesting successful message targeting. The relationship between exposure and acceptance of gay men was significantly mediated through attitudes toward gay men, perceptions of community acceptance, and perceptions of the impact of stigma on gay men, but not through rejection of stereotypes. This model accounted for 39% of variance in acceptance. Conclusions. This evidence suggests that the Acceptance Journeys model of social marketing may be a promising strategy for addressing homophobia in US Black communities.
AB - Objectives.To evaluate the effectiveness of the Acceptance Journeys social marketing campaign to reduce homophobia in the Black community in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Methods. We assessed the campaign's effectiveness using a rolling cross-sectional survey. Data were collected annually online between 2011 and 2015. Each year, a unique sample of Black and White adults, aged 30 years and older, were surveyed in the treatment city (Milwaukee) and in 2 comparison cities that did not have antihomophobia campaigns (St. Louis, MO, and Cleveland, OH; for total sample, n = 3592). Results. Black self-identification and Milwaukee residence were significantly associated with exposure to the campaign, suggesting successful message targeting. The relationship between exposure and acceptance of gay men was significantly mediated through attitudes toward gay men, perceptions of community acceptance, and perceptions of the impact of stigma on gay men, but not through rejection of stereotypes. This model accounted for 39% of variance in acceptance. Conclusions. This evidence suggests that the Acceptance Journeys model of social marketing may be a promising strategy for addressing homophobia in US Black communities.
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U2 - 10.2105/AJPH.2016.303528
DO - 10.2105/AJPH.2016.303528
M3 - Article
C2 - 27854527
SN - 0090-0036
VL - 107
SP - 173
EP - 179
JO - American journal of public health
JF - American journal of public health
IS - 1
ER -