Hormonal Male Contraception: Formative Research to Develop and Test Communication Messaging

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Health
• Contraceptive Development
• Behavioral Science

Background:

• Limited male-controlled contraception options exist.
• Hormonal male contraceptive (HMC) development offers new pregnancy prevention choices for men.
• Understanding perceptions of novel HMC methods is crucial for effective marketing.

Purpose of the Study:

• To examine college-aged men's and women's perceptions of marketing strategies for a novel transdermal gel HMC.
• To inform the creation of effective advertising prototypes for HMC.
• To identify key message attributes that enhance appeal and trustworthiness for HMC.

Main Methods:

• Conducted six focus groups (n=29) with college-aged individuals to gather insights for ad prototype creation.
• Developed ad prototypes based on focus group findings.
• Tested prototypes in semi-structured interviews (n=20) to assess message representation, appeal, and participant feedback, using a constant comparative approach for data analysis.

Main Results:

• Marketing messages emphasizing relatable characters and authentic experiences resonated most with participants.
• Key concepts for HMC marketing identified include humor, destigmatization, information provision, and credibility.
• Ad sentiment and trustworthiness were critical elements influencing participant response to HMC messages.

Conclusions:

• Findings provide a foundation for developing HMC marketing campaigns targeting a college-aged demographic.
• Effective HMC promotion should frame the method as easy to use, safe, and popular, leveraging peer norms and group acceptability.
• Healthcare providers can use these insights for family planning conversations and interventions to promote HMC uptake.