Representation of a Healthy Lifestyle in Anti-Smoking Projects: Influence on Russian Teenagers

Due to the fact that smoking is one of the most common pernicious habits in the world, which has a negative impact on the health of the population, scientists are investigating the effectiveness of different ways of communicative influence on the behaviour of smokers. Studies have shown that a state of cognitive dissonance that occurs when they receive information that conflicts with their worldview and behaviour can induce individuals to quit smoking. So far, however, the effectiveness of different routes to persuasion, the central and peripheral ones, has not been compared in terms of increasing the likelihood of quitting smoking when cognitive dissonance occurs while viewing anti-tobacco ads. The purpose of the study is to determine which route to persuasion is more likely to lead to a decision to quit smoking in the context of Russian teenagers’ perception of anti-tobacco advertising representing a healthy lifestyle. The research design is quantitative, with an online survey carried out to answer the research question. In the course of the study, the author comes to the conclusion that both ways of information elaboration, the direct and peripheral ones, have the same potential for persuasion.