Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Harvard University T H Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Department of Public Health, College for Health, Community and Policy, The University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, USA.
Tob Control. 2023 Jul;32(4):497-500. doi: 10.1136/tobaccocontrol-2021-056720. Epub 2021 Oct 21.
Youth electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) use remains high in the USA, and advertising is a contributor. The purpose of this study was to identify themes and characteristics of popular e-cigarette companies' advertising after e-cigarette companies became more highly scrutinised in 2018.
Using a systematic, quantitative content analysis, three trained coders coded e-cigarette advertisements from JUUL, Puff Bar, Vuse and Blu from 2019 and 2020. Based on previous work, they coded for: type of advertisement, flavours, promotions, product cues, descriptors, claims, imagery, youth-oriented themes and sensational appeals.
Of the 401 e-cigarette advertisements, the majority were emails (38.2%) and Instagram posts (30.9%). Over half (53.6%) showed flavours other than tobacco, with Puff Bar leading the brands (70.2%; p<0.001). The most frequently used product cues were showing the product (51.4%) or packaging (42.4%). The most common claim was being an alternative to smoking (14.2%). The most frequently used imagery was fruit (14.0%), employed most by Puff Bar (p<0.001). The only youth-oriented theme present was humour (4.2%). Positive sensations (eg, good taste, good smell or satisfying; 17.1%) was the most common form of appeal, with Puff Bar using it at the highest frequency (p<0.001).
Even with heightened scrutiny of e-cigarette brands, advertisements still included youth-appealing content such as flavours, fruit imagery and positive sensations. Puff Bar led in all these categories, and it rapidly gained market share after market leader JUUL limited the sales of its flavoured products. Research should continue to monitor the characteristics of e-cigarette advertisements and consider their impact on youth.
在美国，青少年使用电子烟（e-cigarette）的现象仍然很普遍，而广告是其中的一个促成因素。本研究的目的是在 2018 年电子烟公司受到更严格审查后，确定流行电子烟公司广告的主题和特征。
使用系统的、定量的内容分析方法，三名经过培训的编码员对 2019 年和 2020 年 JUUL、Puff Bar、Vuse 和 Blu 电子烟公司的广告进行了编码。基于先前的研究，他们对广告类型、口味、促销、产品线索、描述符、声明、图像、面向青少年的主题和煽动性诉求进行了编码。
在 401 个电子烟广告中，电子邮件（38.2%）和 Instagram 帖子（30.9%）占多数。超过一半（53.6%）展示了除烟草以外的口味，其中 Puff Bar 领先于其他品牌（70.2%；p<0.001）。最常用的产品线索是展示产品（51.4%）或包装（42.4%）。最常见的声明是作为吸烟的替代品（14.2%）。最常用的图像是水果（14.0%），其中 Puff Bar 使用最多（p<0.001）。唯一存在的面向青少年的主题是幽默（4.2%）。积极的感觉（如良好的口感、气味或满足感；17.1%）是最常见的诉求形式，其中 Puff Bar 的使用频率最高（p<0.001）。
即使对电子烟品牌的审查力度加大，广告仍然包含吸引青少年的内容，如口味、水果图像和积极的感觉。Puff Bar 在所有这些类别中都处于领先地位，并且在市场领先者 JUUL 限制其调味产品销售后，它迅速获得了市场份额。研究应继续监测电子烟广告的特征，并考虑其对青少年的影响。
