Burger Joanna, McDermott Melanie Hughes, Chess Caron, Bochenek Eleanor, Perez-Lugo Marla, Pflugh Kerry Kirk
Division of Life Sciences, and Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ 08854-8082, USA.
Risk Anal. 2003 Aug;23(4):791-803. doi: 10.1111/1539-6924.00356.
Presentation format can influence the way target audiences understand risk-related information. Brochures or fish fact sheets are the methods traditionally used by state agencies to inform the public about fish consumption advisories and the risks from consuming fish. This study examines the efficacy of presenting information about the risks from consuming contaminated fish and shellfish in two different formats: a brochure and classroom presentation. The two instruments were developed and tested in Spanish and English, reflecting the local ethnic composition in the Newark Bay Complex. The instruments were tested on women of child-bearing age at the Women, Infants, and Children Center in Elizabeth, New Jersey. Detailed diagrams were used in both presentations, including contaminated fish species, fish preparation methods, and food chain bioaccumulation and transmission to the fetus. There were few language-related differences in the efficacy of the classroom lesson, and the main ideas were understood by both groups. Where there were significant differences in understanding about the risks from consuming fish or crabs from the contaminated waters of Newark Bay, in all cases the women exposed to the classroom lesson had a better understanding than those who read the brochure. Ninety-six percent of the women who heard the lesson understood that it was unsafe to eat fish from the port, compared to 72% of those reading the brochure. Both formats succeeded in imparting information to most women about the area under advisories, the fish species under advisories, and transmission of toxins to the fetus. Information on fish preparation was recalled less clearly, partly because women were asked to relate methods to reduce the risk from consuming fish from 11 presented, and most recalled only two or three of the list. The advantages and disadvantages of conducting short classes to women of child-bearing age are discussed.
呈现形式会影响目标受众理解与风险相关信息的方式。宣传册或鱼类情况说明书是州机构传统上用于向公众通报鱼类消费建议以及食用鱼类风险的方法。本研究考察了以两种不同形式呈现食用受污染鱼类和贝类风险信息的效果：一种是宣传册，另一种是课堂演示。这两种工具以西班牙语和英语开发并进行了测试，反映了纽瓦克湾综合区当地的种族构成。这些工具在新泽西州伊丽莎白市的妇女、婴儿与儿童中心对育龄妇女进行了测试。两种演示都使用了详细的图表，包括受污染的鱼类品种、鱼类烹饪方法以及食物链生物累积和毒素向胎儿的传播。课堂教学的效果在语言相关方面差异不大，两组都理解了主要内容。在对食用纽瓦克湾受污染水域的鱼类或螃蟹的风险理解上存在显著差异的地方，在所有情况下，参加课堂教学的女性比阅读宣传册的女性理解得更好。听过课程的女性中有96%明白食用港口的鱼类不安全，而阅读宣传册的女性中这一比例为72%。两种形式都成功地向大多数女性传达了有关受建议区域、受建议的鱼类品种以及毒素向胎儿传播的信息。关于鱼类烹饪方法的信息回忆得不太清晰，部分原因是要求女性关联从所列出的11种减少食用鱼类风险的方法，而大多数人只记得其中两三种。本文讨论了对育龄妇女开展短期课程的优缺点。
