Two years of AIDS publicity: A review of progress in Scotland

Abstract

Over the past two years, the Scottish Health Education Group (SHEG), the government body responsible for health education in Scotland, has been heavily involved in producing and disseminating publicity about AIDS. This publicity has been developed on the basis of consistent consumer research conducted on their behalf by the Advertising Research Unit at the University of Strathclyde. This paper brings together the key findings generated by a total of eight separate pieces of research, all of which were conducted in Scotland. Two were longitudinal surveys and the remaining six were qualitative. The paper therefore reviews progress made to date in Scotland and discusses the lessons that can be learnt for the production of future AIDS publicity. The research has had two main aims. First, to monitor the general public's basic perceptions about AIDS. Second, to explore audience response to specific interventions both from SHEG and other organizations. As a result, it has guided thinking on individual projects and on overall strategy.