HEALTHPRIZE 500 MOTIVATION KIT FOR COST EFFECTIVE QUITTING

RECENT RESEARCH SUGGESTS THE NEED TO DEVELOP A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE TO CURRENT SMOKING CESSATION PROGRAMS. THE PURPOSE OF THIS PROJECT IS THUS THREEFOLD: (1) TO DEVELOP A HEALTHPRIZE 500 MOTIVATION ENHANCEMENT KIT AS A COST EFFECTIVE, MINIMAL INTERVENTION ALTERNATIVE APPEALING TO A BROAD SPECTRUM OF SMOKERS AND ACCELERATING THE SMOKING CESSATION PROCESS; (2) TO TARGET DEVELOPMENT ESPECIALLY FOR THE 90-95% OF THE SMOKING POPULATION WHICH DOESN'T ATTEND SMOKING CESSATION CLINICS, BUT STILL REQUIRES THREE TO FOUR ATTEMPS OVER A PERIOD OF SEVEN TO TEN YEARS BEFORE QUITTING;(3) TO ASSESS SMOKING EXPERT AND CONSUMER RESPONSE TO THE PRODUCT AT SEVERAL STAGES, IN ORDER TO BETTER POSITION IT ASA USER-FRIENDLY PRODUCT MAXIMIZING ADHERENCE. LONG-TERM OBJECTIVES FOR THE KIT WILL INCLUDE DEVELOPMENT OF COMPANION PRODUCTS (E.G., COMPUTERIZED ASSESSMENTS) AND EXPANSION OF THE TARGET MARKET AREA. A RESEARCH-BASED TYPESCRIPT OF KIT CONTENTS AND AN ARTIST'S MOCK UP HAVE BEENCOMPLETED. FURTHER METHODOLOGY WILL ENTAIL STRUCTURED EXPERT REVIEW OF THESE MATERIALS. RESULTS WILL BE INTEGRATED WITH QUALITATIVE FINDINGS FROM THREE FOCUS GROUPS, TO IDENTIFY VARIOUS LEVELS OF KEY MARKETING VARIABLES. TWO SEPARATE QUANTITATIVE OR INTERACTIVE CONJOINT ANALYSES WILL THEN BE CONDUCTED WITH RANDOMLY SELECTED INDIVIDUALS FROM THE GENERAL PUBLIC AND A GROUP OF WORKSITE PERSONNEL BENEFIT MANAGERS. DATA ON THE NUMBER OF SMOKERS WHO PREFER ALTERNATIVE PROGRAMS SUGGEST WIDE COMMERCIAL APPLICATION. THE KIT CAN ALSO SERVE AS A PROTOTYPE FOR SIMILAR KITS TARGETING OTHER HEALTH BEHAVIOR AREAS.