The Behavior Change Techniques Used in Canadian Online Smoking Cessation Programs: Content Analysis
Laura Struik1, Danielle Rodberg1, Ramona H Sharma2
1School of Nursing, University of British Columbia, Kelowna, BC, Canada.
JMIR Mental Health
|March 1, 2022
Summary
Canadian smoking cessation websites utilize various behavior change techniques (BCTs), with goals, planning, social support, natural consequences, and regulation being most common. This analysis provides a framework for enhancing online cessation programs.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Digital Health Interventions
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Smoking rates in Canada remain high, with stalled cessation rates.
- Government-funded online smoking cessation programs offer potential reach.
- Understanding the behavior change techniques (BCTs) in these websites is crucial for quality assessment and improvement.
Purpose of the Study:
- To apply the Behavior Change Technique Taxonomy version 1 (BCTTv1) to Canadian provincial and federal smoking cessation websites.
- To identify and analyze the specific BCTs employed within these online resources.
Main Methods:
- A deductive content analysis approach was used.
- Twelve government-funded Canadian smoking cessation websites were analyzed.
- Website content was coded using the 93 BCTs within the 16 BCT categories of the BCTTv1 taxonomy.
Main Results:
- Fourteen out of 16 BCT categories were identified across the analyzed websites.
- Goals and planning, social support, natural consequences, and regulation were universally present (in all 12 websites).
- The specific implementation of BCTs varied among the websites.
Conclusions:
- The BCTTv1 taxonomy is a suitable method for evaluating the behavior change content of online smoking cessation programs.
- Findings provide actionable insights for enhancing Canadian smoking cessation websites.
- The study offers an evaluation framework to link web-based content with smoking cessation outcomes.
Keywords:
behavior change techniquecontent analysisfederalgovernmentinternetmental healthonline programprovincialsmokingsmoking cessationwebsiteMore Related Videos
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