Learner characteristics associated with responses to film and interactive video lessons on smokeless tobacco

To determine college students' cognitive and affective responses to alternative technologies for presenting a lesson on smokeless tobacco, and to learn if responses to experimental conditions were associated with gender, ethnicity, tobacco-use practices, and the practices of significant others, 162 undergraduate students were randomly assigned to either a control group (questionnaire only) or one of two experimental groups. Experimental subjects viewed a videotape or an interactive video version of the lesson and then completed a questionnaire to ascertain knowledge and attitude. Each main effect was significant for knowledge about smokeless tobacco [experimental condition (P less than 0.001); gender (P less than 0.024); and ethnicity (P less than 0.003)]. The interactive video group demonstrated the most accurate and comprehensive recall. Neither gender nor ethnicity interacted significantly with experimental condition, indicating that the effect of experimental condition is constant across gender and ethnicity. Attitudes to instructional formats did not vary significantly as a function of experimental condition or gender, but were associated with ethnicity (P less than 0.034). Again, neither gender nor ethnicity interacted significantly with experimental condition, suggesting that attitudes reflect a generalized view toward content irrespective of presentation mode. Responses to both experimental conditions were quite favorable. Items about present and past experiences with tobacco, with the exception of the "Do you smoke?" item, were not associated with total cognitive score or attitude.