Storytelling for Health Promotion: A Scoping Review

ObjectiveTo examine storytelling interventions as health promotion tools in underserved populations across disease states, including hypertension, diabetes, overall chronic disease, obstetric care, and preventative health to assess intervention design and cultural tailoring and analyze reported quantitative and qualitative health outcomes.Data SourceA comprehensive literature search was performed in PUBMED.Study Inclusion and Exclusion CriteriaStudies were included if they implemented a storytelling intervention to promote health knowledge, behavior change, or health-related outcomes. Excluded studies lacked an evaluated intervention or reported outcomes. Reviews, commentaries, editorials, protocols without outcome data, and duplicate publications without novel findings were excluded. Only English-language studies were included due to reviewer fluency.Data ExtractionTwenty-five studies were included and categorized based on disease focus.Data SynthesisA narrative synthesis and inductive content analysis was performed. Studies were grouped by disease state and analyzed for population demographics, intervention development and delivery, cultural tailoring, storytelling theory, and measured outcomes.ResultsStorytelling, in digital and oral formats, improved health knowledge, self-efficacy, and preventive behaviors. Several methods were employed to culturally tailor interventions. Interventions were based on multiple behavioral theories.ConclusionsWhen culturally tailored and rooted in theory, regardless of delivery format, storytelling can foster behavior change across diverse health conditions.