Consumer reactions to differing amounts of written drug information

Four prototype patient package inserts (PPIs) for erythromycin were tested in an analog study using 325 individuals drawn from a college community. There was no difference in the total amount of knowledge communicated by the different PPIs, but results for individual test items suggest (1) that more explicit information may be better recalled, and (2) that longer PPIs may aid in information integration, whereas shorter PPIs may aid in pure recall of facts. PPIs containing elaboration on why drug effects occur were rated by the subjects as more "accurate." Subjects tended to rate PPIs that provided behavioral instructions on what to do if certain drug effects occurred as designed to promote better care.