Comics as a Medium for Providing Information on Adult Immunizations

Abstract

This study compared the following effects of two vaccine information flyers-one developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) versus one adapted from this information to a comic medium (comic)-on adults: (a) attitude toward the flyer; (b) perceived informativeness of the flyer; (c) intention to seek more information about adult immunizations after viewing the flyer; and (d) intention to get immunized after viewing the flyer. A between-group, randomized trial was used to randomly assign adults (age 18 years or older) at an ambulatory care center to review the CDC or comic flyer. Participants were asked to complete a survey to measure several outcome variables. Items were measured using a 7-point semantic differential scale. Independent-samples t-test was used for comparisons. A total of 265 surveys (CDC n = 132 vs comic n = 133) were analyzed. The comic flyer had a statistically significant effect on participants' attitudes and their perception of the flyer's informativeness compared to the CDC flyer. Flyer type did not have a statistically significant effect on intention-related variables. The study findings showed that the comic flyer was positively evaluated compared to the CDC flyer. These findings could provide a new direction for developing adult educational materials.

Life-course immunization as a gateway to health

“…Using cartoons or comics may be an innovative strategy to attract attention and curiosity, or to demystify vaccination concepts for the general public. Compared to text-based flyers, comics were shown to have positive effects on adult and teenage attitudes toward the scientific concepts underlying infectious diseases and vaccination [120,121]. The general tone, format, and language of communications need to be adapted to harness the current behavior change strategies available in our society to make a difference.…”

Ngutulu Kagwero (agents of change): study design of a participatory comic pilot study on sexual violence prevention and post-rape clinical care with refugee youth in a humanitarian setting in Uganda

“…Our study addressed the lack of effective SGBV prevention and post-rape care interventions in humanitarian contexts tailored for youth [9,10] through developing and pilot-testing a comic book intervention, a promising strategy for increasing health promotion and literacy about stigmatized topics [37]. Comic books, and other forms of graphic medicine, have been used in interventions for a variety of health issues such as HIV, sexually transmitted infections, and dementia [80][81][82][83][84]. These tools can both educate the general population and be used to train healthcare providers to improve care and patient experiences [85].…”

COVID ISSUE: Visual Narratives About COVID-19 Improve Message Accessibility, Self-Efficacy, and Health Precautions

“…The cartoon-like visual nature of comics and other visual narratives may also make scientific information less daunting and more approachable for people. When it comes to the communication of sensitive health topics or complex, unfamiliar, or scary topics like vaccines (Muzumdar and Pantaleo, 2017), people often prefer simplified, stylized, conceptual, or interpretational illustrations over photographs and realistic art (Haragi et al, 2019;Farinella and Mbakile-Mahlanza, 2020).…”