A Paid Radio Advertising Campaign to Promote Parent-Child Communication about Alcohol

This study assessed the impact of a paid radio commercial designed to promote parent-child communication about alcohol use and sponsored by the Bureau of Substance Abuse Services, Massachusetts Department of Public Health. A random-digit-dial telephone survey of parents or guardians of children ages 10-17 years was conducted after a four-week advertising flight. Respondents with unassisted recall of the commercial more often disagreed that parent-child discussion is useful only if children have begun to experiment with alcohol, and more often reported having three or more parent-child discussions about alcohol compared to those who did not recall the commercial. Findings suggest the potential benefit of paid media campaigns to encourage parents to talk with their children about alcohol.