Five research-backed steps to a pro-vaccination social media campaign
What can vaccine proponents, clinicians and public health communicators learn from “anti-vaxxers?” A lot, according to new guidance for pro-vaccination social media events written by University of Pittsburgh health scientists.
The five-part guidelines, published today in the journal Vaccine, arose from an analysis of a grassroots pro-vaccination campaign organized last year by popular physician and social media personality Zubin Damania, M.D., colloquially known as “ZDoggMD.” Unexpectedly, more than three-quarters of the tweets associated with the event were opposing vaccination, researchers found.
“While at first it felt a little defeating that the event was co-opted to spread anti-vaccination messages, we learned some really constructive lessons,” said lead author Beth Hoffman, M.P.H., a doctoral student at Pitt’s Graduate School of Public Health. “I expect our guidelines will prove valuable
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Increased social media use linked to developing depression, research finds
Young adults who increased their use of social media were significantly more likely to develop depression within six months, according to a new national study authored by Dr. Brian Primack, dean of the College of Education and Health Professions and professor of public health at the University of Arkansas.
Compared with participants who used less than 120 minutes per day of social media, for example, young adults who used more than 300 minutes per day were 2.8 times as likely to become depressed within six months.
The study, which will be published online Dec. 10 and is scheduled for the February 2021 issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, is the first large, national study to show a link between social media use and depression over time.