CHES Health Communication Strategies 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Motivational interviewing (MI) in health education is BEST described as:
- A collaborative conversation style that strengthens a person's motivation and commitment to change (Correct answer)
- A directive counseling technique where the educator prescribes behavior changes
- A group therapy approach for addressing substance use disorders only
- A scripted interview protocol for conducting health needs assessments
Correct answer: A collaborative conversation style that strengthens a person's motivation and commitment to change
MI is a patient-centered, collaborative counseling style designed to elicit and strengthen intrinsic motivation for behavior change.
Question 2: When developing health messages for social media, which principle is MOST important?
- Creating content that is shareable, visually engaging, and platform-appropriate (Correct answer)
- Reposting existing scientific journal articles without modification
- Using only formal language to maintain professional credibility
- Limiting posts to once per month to avoid audience fatigue
Correct answer: Creating content that is shareable, visually engaging, and platform-appropriate
Effective social media health messages are visually engaging, concise, shareable, and tailored to the specific norms and formats of each platform.
Question 3: The 'elaboration likelihood model' suggests that persuasive health messages are processed via:
- Central (thoughtful) or peripheral (cue-based) routes depending on audience motivation and ability (Correct answer)
- Only emotional appeals when the topic involves personal health risks
- Logical arguments exclusively when targeting educated audiences
- Repetition alone to increase message acceptance over time
Correct answer: Central (thoughtful) or peripheral (cue-based) routes depending on audience motivation and ability
The Elaboration Likelihood Model (Petty & Cacioppo) identifies two routes to persuasion: the central route (careful processing) and the peripheral route (relying on heuristics).
Question 4: A health educator receives feedback that a campaign's messages are being misunderstood by the target audience. The BEST next step is:
- Conduct focus groups or cognitive interviews to identify comprehension barriers (Correct answer)
- Increase the frequency of message delivery without changing content
- Assume the audience lacks the intelligence to understand the message
- Switch entirely to a new communication channel without further assessment
Correct answer: Conduct focus groups or cognitive interviews to identify comprehension barriers
Focus groups and cognitive interviews help identify why messages are misunderstood, enabling evidence-based revisions before wider dissemination.
Question 5: Which of the following BEST defines 'health literacy'?
- The capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information to make appropriate health decisions (Correct answer)
- The ability to read and write at a college level in a health care setting
- Knowledge of medical terminology used in clinical environments
- The degree to which patients follow physician instructions
Correct answer: The capacity to obtain, process, and understand basic health information to make appropriate health decisions
Health literacy encompasses obtaining, processing, and understanding health information to make informed decisions, not just reading ability.
Question 6: The 'source credibility' of a health message is MOST influenced by which two factors?
- Expertise and trustworthiness of the communicator (Correct answer)
- Attractiveness and income level of the communicator
- Speaking speed and use of technical language
- The number of citations included in the message
Correct answer: Expertise and trustworthiness of the communicator
Research consistently shows that source credibility is determined primarily by the perceived expertise (knowledge) and trustworthiness (honesty) of the communicator.
Question 7: In health communication, 'audience segmentation' is used to:
- Divide a large population into subgroups with shared characteristics to tailor messages (Correct answer)
- Reduce the total number of people reached by a health campaign
- Assign different educators to geographic regions randomly
- Prioritize communication efforts toward the wealthiest community members
Correct answer: Divide a large population into subgroups with shared characteristics to tailor messages
Audience segmentation identifies subgroups based on demographics, psychographics, or behavior so messages can be customized for maximum relevance and effectiveness.
CHES Health Communication Strategies 3
Motivational interviewing (MI) in health education is BEST described as: