Early Evidence of an Opioid Education Campaign: A Case Study of Rhode Island

The opioid crisis poses a significant burden at a national level, and certain states have seen particularly high rates of misuse, addiction, and overdose. In 2017, Rhode Island reported opioid-related deaths nearly twice the national average.

To test message efficacy and evaluate the effectiveness of campaign messaging to shift attitudes/beliefs related to opioid misuse in Rhode Island.

In phase 1, near-final versions of 6 advertisements were shown to a sample of the target audience via an online survey portal to assess responses to the messages (N = 1210). Phase 2 of the study employed a pre/posttest design whereby 2 cross-sectional surveys were conducted, first prior to the campaign launch (N = 456) and another survey 6 months later in Rhode Island (N = 433).

Phase 1 was conducted online using a nationally representative panel, and phase 2 included a convenience sample of participants in Rhode Island recruited to undergo an online survey.

Eighteen- to 29-year-old members of a nationally representative online panel (phase 1) and 15- to 34-year-olds living in the state of Rhode Island during data collection periods.

Empathy and destigmatization ("someone like me could become addicted..." and "those who are dependent on prescription opioids are victims") and perceived risk of developing dependence on opioids.

In both phases, there was an increase in empathy ("someone") (phase 1: pretest [31%], posttest [42%; z = 5.5, P < .0001] and phase 2 [34% baseline vs 41% follow-up; z = 2.0, P = .04]) and destigmatization ("victims") (phase 1: pretest [54%], posttest [58%; z = 2.2, P = .01] and phase 2 [46% baseline vs 54% follow-up; z = 2.2, P = .03]). There was also an increase in perceived risk: phase 1 (pretest [65%], posttest [75%; z = 5.4, P < .0001]) and phase 2 (66% baseline vs 74% follow-up; z = 2.5, P = .01).

This study demonstrated the potential efficacy of a media campaign to shift young adults' opioid-related attitudes.