Development and refinement of a communication guide to help young adults in Texas reconnect and reduce loneliness
Objective: Loneliness among young people is a contemporary public health crisis exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The present research examined the development of a modest yet meaningful health communication intervention resource that would become an asset in a larger health campaign: a communic...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Elsevier
2024-12-01
|
| Series: | PEC Innovation |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772628223001267 |
| _version_ | 1827222839473733632 |
|---|---|
| author | Erin E. Donovan Audrey Shaffer Emily Kaiser Karly Quaack Michael Mackert Weijia Shi Daniela De Luca |
| author_facet | Erin E. Donovan Audrey Shaffer Emily Kaiser Karly Quaack Michael Mackert Weijia Shi Daniela De Luca |
| author_sort | Erin E. Donovan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objective: Loneliness among young people is a contemporary public health crisis exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The present research examined the development of a modest yet meaningful health communication intervention resource that would become an asset in a larger health campaign: a communication guide aimed at helping young people reach out and reconnect with others. Methods: Study One established the need for a loneliness intervention in Texas with survey data (N = 795). A communication guide was developed based on research and theory. Study Two employed focus group interviews with potential audience members (N = 31) to critically assess and inform revisions to the communication guide. Results: Study One results indicated that a substantial proportion of young adult Texans felt as though their social connection had decreased and their loneliness had increased since the onset of the pandemic. Themes in focus group responses from Study Two suggested several strengths of the communication guide and some opportunities for revision. Conclusion: A communication guide with tips for reconnecting could be a valuable tool to empower young people and promote social connection. Innovation: This study involved the development and refinement of a new communication resource that was informed by a priority audience of a major health communication campaign. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T22:43:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8b1b3f1a975d4d0783f39e06fa1e20a9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2772-6282 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2025-03-21T16:44:52Z |
| publishDate | 2024-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PEC Innovation |
| spelling | doaj.art-8b1b3f1a975d4d0783f39e06fa1e20a92024-06-16T05:48:50ZengElsevierPEC Innovation2772-62822024-12-014100246Development and refinement of a communication guide to help young adults in Texas reconnect and reduce lonelinessErin E. Donovan0Audrey Shaffer1Emily Kaiser2Karly Quaack3Michael Mackert4Weijia Shi5Daniela De Luca6Department of Communication Studies, Moody College of Communication, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Center for Health Communication, Moody College of Communication & Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Corresponding author at: Department of Communication Studies, The University of Texas at Austin, 2504A Whitis Ave. (A1105), Austin, TX 78712-0115, USA.Department of Communication Studies, Moody College of Communication, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USADepartment of Communication Studies, Moody College of Communication, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USADepartment of Communication Studies, Moody College of Communication, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USACenter for Health Communication, Moody College of Communication & Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA; Stan Richards School of Advertising & Public Relations, Moody College of Communication, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USACenter for Health Communication, Moody College of Communication & Dell Medical School, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USAStan Richards School of Advertising & Public Relations, Moody College of Communication, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USAObjective: Loneliness among young people is a contemporary public health crisis exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. The present research examined the development of a modest yet meaningful health communication intervention resource that would become an asset in a larger health campaign: a communication guide aimed at helping young people reach out and reconnect with others. Methods: Study One established the need for a loneliness intervention in Texas with survey data (N = 795). A communication guide was developed based on research and theory. Study Two employed focus group interviews with potential audience members (N = 31) to critically assess and inform revisions to the communication guide. Results: Study One results indicated that a substantial proportion of young adult Texans felt as though their social connection had decreased and their loneliness had increased since the onset of the pandemic. Themes in focus group responses from Study Two suggested several strengths of the communication guide and some opportunities for revision. Conclusion: A communication guide with tips for reconnecting could be a valuable tool to empower young people and promote social connection. Innovation: This study involved the development and refinement of a new communication resource that was informed by a priority audience of a major health communication campaign.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772628223001267LonelinessSocial connectionCommunication interventionInterpersonal communicationHealth campaignYoung adults |
| spellingShingle | Erin E. Donovan Audrey Shaffer Emily Kaiser Karly Quaack Michael Mackert Weijia Shi Daniela De Luca Development and refinement of a communication guide to help young adults in Texas reconnect and reduce loneliness PEC Innovation Loneliness Social connection Communication intervention Interpersonal communication Health campaign Young adults |
| title | Development and refinement of a communication guide to help young adults in Texas reconnect and reduce loneliness |
| title_full | Development and refinement of a communication guide to help young adults in Texas reconnect and reduce loneliness |
| title_fullStr | Development and refinement of a communication guide to help young adults in Texas reconnect and reduce loneliness |
| title_full_unstemmed | Development and refinement of a communication guide to help young adults in Texas reconnect and reduce loneliness |
| title_short | Development and refinement of a communication guide to help young adults in Texas reconnect and reduce loneliness |
| title_sort | development and refinement of a communication guide to help young adults in texas reconnect and reduce loneliness |
| topic | Loneliness Social connection Communication intervention Interpersonal communication Health campaign Young adults |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772628223001267 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT erinedonovan developmentandrefinementofacommunicationguidetohelpyoungadultsintexasreconnectandreduceloneliness AT audreyshaffer developmentandrefinementofacommunicationguidetohelpyoungadultsintexasreconnectandreduceloneliness AT emilykaiser developmentandrefinementofacommunicationguidetohelpyoungadultsintexasreconnectandreduceloneliness AT karlyquaack developmentandrefinementofacommunicationguidetohelpyoungadultsintexasreconnectandreduceloneliness AT michaelmackert developmentandrefinementofacommunicationguidetohelpyoungadultsintexasreconnectandreduceloneliness AT weijiashi developmentandrefinementofacommunicationguidetohelpyoungadultsintexasreconnectandreduceloneliness AT danieladeluca developmentandrefinementofacommunicationguidetohelpyoungadultsintexasreconnectandreduceloneliness |