SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE EVALUATION OF THE 2003/2004 FESTIVE DRINK DRIVE CAMPAIGN
CHAPTER EIGHT: COMMUNICATION EVALUATION
8.1 The content of this chapter is based on the quantitative phase of research. In order to evaluate campaign awareness and understanding by drivers as well as possible impact on behaviour, the following criteria were considered:
- Recall of all aspects of the campaign communication including content and media
- Prompted recognition of logos / visual imagery
- Communication take out and potential impact of the communication on attitudes and behaviour
8.2 It is also important to mention that a measure of 'recall of seeing or hearing any communication recently on the topic of drink driving' was ascertained in the main survey which was undertaken in February 2004, and also placed on the mruk Omnibus survey in November 2003 and January 2004. The Omnibus survey was also commissioned by the Scottish Executive.
8.3 Initially respondents were asked if they could recall seeing or hearing any communication recently on the topic of drink driving. Just over half (54%) of all respondents indicated that they had definitely seen or heard something on this subject. This measure of recall was also higher amongst respondents in the socio economic group AB at 64%. There has also been a slight increase in recall since Nov 2003 when recall was 52% (Omnibus figure).
8.4 All those respondents who indicated they definitely or maybe could recall seeing or hearing something on the subject of drink driving were asked what specifics they remembered. At this point respondents were not prompted with anything. Looking initially at spontaneous mentions for media, as shown in Figure 8.1 overleaf, television received most mentions at 40%. All other media was mentioned by a minority; in all instances less than 10%. There was a similar pattern for this result amongst the target audience 17-29 year old males.
8.5 On prompting individuals with a list of all the specifics of the communication, it can be noted (see Figure 8.2) that recall increases for all media formats. TV, press and radio advertising again received highest mentions. Mentions were also slightly higher for 17-29 year old males, one of the key audiences.
8.6 Factors recalled on communication content were also established at a spontaneous and prompted level. A number of elements of the content were cited spontaneously and most frequent were those pertaining to 'loss' or 'risk' (see Figure 8.3 and 8.4). It should be noted that recall is slightly higher amongst 17-29 year old males for 'You have too much to lose if you drink and drive!'.
8.7 As with media, recall increased for all aspects of communication once respondents were prompted. Overall, 17-29 year old males had lower recall of content compared to the sample as a whole.
8.8 The aforementioned findings show that the communication has generated awareness of the subject and different strands of the actual content.
8.9 In considering the effectiveness of the campaign, the results have also been examined according to the group of respondents who definitely recalled seeing something on the subject and those who definitely didn't.
8.10 Assessment of the results according to these particular groups is discussed in the following paragraphs in the context of recall and perceived communication take out. From Figure 8.5 below it should be noted that awareness of prompted media recall was higher amongst those seeing or hearing communication. Prompted recall was highest for advertising on television (62%), press (32%) and radio (30%). This was followed by 'item on television' and 'story in newspaper' mentioned by around one in four respondents. All other media was cited by a minority and was lowest for website information.
8.11 On the same note, for prompted recall of communication content we see a higher recall amongst those who appeared to have been exposed to the campaign.
8.12 The content of the campaign communication has been remembered with particular emphasis on the following elements:
- 'Don't risk drinking and driving'
- 'You could kill someone if you drink and drive'
- 'You have too much to lose if you drink and drive'
8.13 All these factors were mentioned by half or more of this audience (see Figure 8.6) and reflected the intended key message of the campaign i.e. 'risk' and the potential impact of taking a chance on drinking and driving. Furthermore, a number of elements of the content of the 'Wheel of Misfortune campaign' were also remembered, detailed as follows:
- 'You could lose your job' was mentioned by over one in four.
- 'Insurance costs will increase if you drink and drive' mentioned by 23% of respondents.
8.14 Still looking at Figure 8.6, 'Who's watching' campaign has also generated awareness and over one in four respondents mentioned "If you drink and drive someone could report you". Although only by a minority, there was also mention of:
- "You should worry about being seen drinking".
8.15 From an evaluation perspective it was also important to gauge understanding of the communication. On this basis, those people who recalled a specific element about the communication were asked what they believed the communication was trying to tell them. As shown in Figure 8.7, a majority (76%) believed it was 'You shouldn't drink and drive'. On this point, a marginally higher proportion of 17-29 year old men considered the communication suggested:
- "There was a high risk of being caught if you drink and drive" - 15% versus 11% of total sample.
- "You are putting other peoples lives in danger" - 23% of this group versus 19% of total sample.
8.16 Also worth noting is the concept of putting people's lives in danger, mentioned by 19%. Similarly 15% indicated "You are taking a risk if you drink and drive". Small proportions mentioned other factors. Nevertheless, these findings show campaign messages from 'Wheel of Misfortune', 'Don't risk it' and 'Who's watching' were all coming through.
8.17 The effectiveness of communication take out was again considered looking at those who definitely remembered seeing something on the subject versus those who didn't. As shown in Figure 8.8 the message 'You shouldn't drink and drive' and 'Putting other people's lives in danger' was more prevalent for this group.
8.18 The quantitative evaluation also determined prompted recognition of visual stimulus. As shown in Figure 8.9 recognition was highest for the logo - 'Drink driving you have too much to lose', recognised by almost one in four. All other stimulus was mentioned by a minority (ranging from 6% to 12%) and over half did not recognise any of the imagery. Recognition of the logo 'Drink driving you have too much to lose', the 'Wheel of Misfortune' and the poster 'Off-putting isn't it when somebody's watching' were all slightly higher amongst the target audience 17-29 year old males. The differences were between 2-4 percentage points.
8.19 In looking at the main perceived communication out-take for each individual visual / image, the findings showed the most dominant messages consistently centred around: 'It's too big a risk to drink and drive' and 'It's dangerous to drink and drive'.
8.20 The findings in respect of each image are discussed in the following paragraphs.
8.21 For the 'Wheel of Misfortune' communication the most dominant message was 'Its dangerous to drink and drive' mentioned by 51% (Figure 8.10). Around a quarter commented on the risk element in some capacity whilst a similar proportion highlighted 'You could lose your licence if you drink and drive'. The relatively small base size should be taken into account for this finding.
8.22 For the logo 'Drink driving you have too much to lose' around a third believed it conveyed issues on 'risk', 'danger' and specifically loss of licence (see Figure 8.11).
8.23 The 'Don't risk it' visual was most strongly associated with elements of 'risk', 'danger' and 'chance' if drinking and driving (see Figure 8.12).
8.24 Finally, for the Poster 'Off-putting isn't it when somebody's watching' the most prevalent message was 'You could be reported if you are seen drinking and driving and then getting into a car'. This result should be treated carefully given the small base size (56 respondents).
8.25 A majority of respondents didn't recall the radio commercials. It is worth noting however that recall was higher amongst 17-29 year old males. This was 31% versus 20% for the total sample.
8.26 As shown in Figure 8.15 messages associated with the radio commercial centred round the following criteria:
- It's dangerous to drink and drive, cited by 42%,
- You shouldn't take a chance on drinking and driving, cited by 33%,
- It's too big a risk, cited by 33%.
27. One of the objectives of the quantitative research was to look at the potential impact
of the communication on attitudes and likely behaviour. To assess this, level of agreement with a series of statements was measured using a five point scale. The findings show that the majority agreed to some extent that the communication would:
- "Make people think more about drinking anything at all and driving" (81%)
- "Make people aware of what can happen if they drink and drive" (88%)
- "Make people think more about the risks before drinking and driving" (85%).
8.28 Once again these attitudes were slightly higher amongst those who definitely recalled seeing / hearing the communication.
8.29 Albeit agreement was not as strong, around two thirds (65%) believed the communication would:
- "Deter people from drinking and driving"
- "Make people more likely to report people who drink and drive"
8.30 Finally, the style / tone of advertising appears to have been found acceptable and the majority (94%) agreed: "It's good to have advertising which shows what will happen to the offenders".
