What We Do

Campaigns

Supporting Impaired Driving Prevention with Citizens and Law Enforcement: 2005-2007

For this project, MOST of Us is pioneering the use of the social norms approach to build public and legislative support for impaired driving prevention strategies. This model of “social norms advocacy” will be tested in high-risk impaired driving states, beginning with Montana. The project began with the administration of three surveys about impaired driving and impaired driving enforcement: an online survey of Montana law enforcement officers, a phone survey of Montana adults, and a national phone survey of adult residents of all 50 states. The results of these surveys will be used to influence public conversation about impaired driving issues. Sponsor: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Conferences

Montana Summer Institute

Montana State University–Bozeman MOST of Us invites you to attend the 9th Annual Montana Summer Institute for Positive Community Norms, July 12th-14th, 2011 in Big Sky, MT. Click here to for detailed information on the Montana Summer Institute.

Consulting

Challenging College Alcohol Abuse

In conjunction with University of Arizona prevention expert Koreen Johannessen, M.S.W., MOST of Us offers the Challenging College Alcohol Abuse (CCAA) model program. CCAA is a social norms and environmental management program that reduces high-risk drinking and related negative consequences in college students ages 18 to 24 years old.

CCAA has been reviewed by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Registry of Effective Programs and approved as a Model Program. SAMHSA Model Programs must demonstrate that they prevent or reduce substance abuse and other related high-risk behaviors.

CCAA offers campus health services new and innovative ways to communicate public health information to students, the campus community, and the surrounding community to:

• Correct misperceptions, increase knowledge, and change attitudes about alcohol and drug use behaviors among undergraduate students
• Change policies and practices related to alcohol and drug use and abuse among campus fraternity and sorority chapters
• Change faculty, administration, parental, community, and policymaker perceptions to prevent perpetuation of alcohol and drug myths
• Increase restrictions on alcohol availability and monitor on- and off-campus distribution and consumption

CCAA fosters the development of policies that establish and maintain a healthy and safe environment for all students. If you are interested in using the CCAA model to improve the health and safety of your campus environment, begin by reviewing the five essential resources listed below.

Challenging College Alcohol Abuse – An Introduction to Planning and Program Development

Challenging College Alcohol Abuse – Program Development Assessment

Challenging College Alcohol Abuse

The Social Norms Approach at The University of Arizona

SAMSHA’s Achieving Outcomes: A Practitioner’s Guide to Effective Prevention

This reading will prepare you for a consultation with MOST of Us to determine if the CCAA program is right for your campus. If you are interested in working with MOST of Us to implement the CCAA program please e-mail us at mail@mostofus.org.

Recognition

Model Program: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention Model Program Award: U.S. Department of Education

Click to download a copy of A Practical Guide to Alcohol Abuse Prevention: A Campus Study in Implementing Social Norms and Environmental Management Approaches.

Community Coalitions

MOST of Us has worked extensively to assist in creating and organizing statewide and community coalitions. In 1998, Jeff Linkenbach, Ed.D., director of MOST of Us was instrumental in creating the Montana Initiative to Reduce Harmful Drinking through Campus and Community Partnerships. This initiative involved coordination between the Governor, the Board of Regents of Higher Education, and all 23 Presidents of Montana’s higher educational institutions. This Initiative led to the foundation of the Montana Higher Education Network for Substance Abuse Prevention, which is a cooperative coalition of professionals who represent institutions of higher education. Additionally, MOST of Us has provided technical assistance, training, and strategic planning to a variety of local coalitions such as DUI task forces and Safe Kids/Safe Community coalitions.

Comprehensive Environmental Strategies

Comprehensive environmental strategies not only can coexist with the social norms approach, they can be become more effective when conducted within a social norms framework. Environmental strategies include revising public policy, conducing media advocacy, building grassroots coalitions, and training community members. MOST of Us has extensive experience in each of these areas and will be continuing to strengthen the relationship between environmental strategies and the social norms approach.

Environmental and Media Advocacy

Environmental advocacy entails creating a political, economic, and social atmosphere conducive to societal change. Media advocacy is a part of environmental advocacy that entails spreading and framing a media message through tools such as opinion editorials, letters to the editor, and press releases.

The Main Frame: Strategies for Social Norms Newsmaking is a guide to using the social norms approach when conducting environmental and media advocacy. It was created in the fall of 2002 by MOST of Us director Jeff Linkenbach, Ed.D. and social norms experts from around the country.The Main Frame is available on our web site, free of charge.

Missouri’s Youth/Adult Alliance

MYAA is a statewide coalition that assists local community efforts in addressing underage drinking. Its mission is to encourage advocates to reduce youth access to alcohol by implementing environmental and social policy changes in their communities. By changing policy we will improve the environment that our children are living in each day; the environment that encourages them to drink alcohol. MYAA is also a driving force behind statewide advocacy efforts at the legislative level in Jefferson City; the Coalition maintains a strong presence in and around the Capitol.

During a time when the media is filled with reports of illegal drug activity involving young people, MYAA remains single-minded in its pursuit of reducing access to the nation’s number one drug used by children and youth: alcohol. In fact, many youth in the Missouri are actively involved in MYAA because they understand the implications of youth alcohol use. These young people are prepared to speak out about how they are targeted by the alcohol industry and about how normalizing the use of alcohol in society helps to create a climate of abuse. Our youth are a very instrumental part of our coalition.

Surveys

MOST of Us® Surveys

We have a variety of MOST of Us® surveys designed to address alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use for youth, parents, and community members. Accurate data gathered in a way which facilitates message development is absolutely necessary for a successful Positive Community Norms project. The Youth survey can be administered as an online or paper survey. The Parent survey is administered as a telephone survey. Prices vary due to size of population and number of reports needed. Please contact Kelly Jutila with specific information about the population, type of survey, and purpose of results to receive a quote for survey costs.

Research

Cardiovascular Health Social Marketing Campaign: Cholesterol

MOST of Us developed a series of campaign concepts that could be used to promote awareness of blood pressure and cholesterol numbers and targets, based upon the newest medical guidelines, among people with diagnosed high blood pressure and cholesterol.

The cholesterol messages became the basis of the “Take Control” campaign, for which MOST of Us created television, radio and print advertisements and a brochure “workbook” that will be distributed in select Montana markets. The Take Control campaign focused on steps individuals could take to become more active in their healthcare, in controlling their cholesterol and in improving their health.

Sponsor: Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services

Cardiovascular Health Social Marketing Campaign: Heart Attack

The purpose of this project was to increase awareness about heart attack among Montanans ages 45 and older. MOST of Us developed a television, radio and print campaign that communicated the warning signs and symptoms of heart attack and the urgency of calling emergency medical services at the first sign of a heart attack.

Based on a review of literature which showed that heart attacks in women have subtle symptoms and often go undiagnosed, MOST of Us focused this campaign on the differences between the signs and symptoms of heart attack experienced by men and women, creating television, radio and print ads targeted to each gender.

Sponsor: Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services

Cardiovascular Health Social Marketing Campaign: Stroke

High-Intensity Social Norms Safety Belt Campaign for Teens: 2005-2007

MOST of Us Prevent Drinking and Driving Campaign: 2000-2003

Methylmercury Risk & Awareness in American Indian Women of Childbearing Age: 2005-2006

Project Evaluation

MOST of Us staff, consultants, and project partners engage in various evaluation and research roles. We utilize our expertise to assist other research projects and organizations. Outcome evaluation is what drives all MOST of Us research. Each of our research projects is rigorously evaluated, and the feedback that is generated during this process is used to strengthen the effectiveness of the intervention.

Qualitative Research

Qualitative research is a major component of MOST of Us research. With each of our projects, we constantly gather feedback from the target audience on the effectiveness of and reactions to the research intervention. This process typically occurs through the use of interviews and focus groups.

With regard to focus groups, MOST of Us has created a sophisticated methodology that allows for the triangulation of written and spoken qualitative data with quantitative data that is also obtained during focus groups. Additionally, conducting focus which deal with social norms campaigns is a specialized task. It requires that the techniques typically used for focus groups be altered because social norms messages are specifically designed to challenge the beliefs and perceptions of the target group. The methodology designed by MOST of Us directly deals with this issue.

Quantitative Research

Quantitative research is a critical element of the social norms approach. It is used to gather baseline data that serves as the basis of a media campaign message. It is also used to evaluate the campaign’s effectiveness with regard to shifting a target group’s perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors.

MOST of Us has extensive experience with regard to creating a quantitative research design, as well as conducting and evaluating quantitative research. We have conducted quantitative research in areas as diverse as parent/child communication, seatbelt use, nutrition/exercise, and tobacco use.

Social Norms Program To Increase Support for Impaired Driving Prevention Strategies: 2005-2007

Traditional Media

Impaired Driving Prevention 2004-2005

Media Campaigns

The majority of the research projects conducted by MOST of Us are based on creating comprehensive media campaigns that shift public perceptions, attitudes, and behaviors. The campaigns are continually refined and evaluated to ensure that they are effective. All of the campaigns are planned and implemented according to the Montana Model of Social Norms Marketing.

Posters, Brochures and Promotional Items

Posters, brochures, and promotional items are an important element of social norms campaigns. During the designing process, MOST of Us does substantial research on the target audience in order to maximize the usefulness, appeal, and value of these items. MOST of Us has created brochures that address a wide variety of topics (i.e. defining what social norms marketing is and what health promotion techniques are effective). Poster topics have ranged from preventing teen smoking to encouraging adult seatbelt use. When designing promotional items, consideration of what will be visible and engaging for the target audience is taken into account.

Strategic Marketing and Media

One of the most important indicators of whether or not a social norms campaign will be successful is what level of dosage the target audience receives of the campaign message. The way to ensure that campaign message attains maximum reach and frequency is to design strategic marketing and media plans that utilize both traditional media (television, radio, newspapers) and less traditional means of marketing (creative activities and techniques such as special promotional events).

Television, Newspaper and Radio Advertising

Television, Newspaper and Radio Advertising
MOST of Us has created numerous television, newspaper, and radio advertisements on topics such as community involvement, parent/teen communication, and seatbelt use. Media production is conducted and supervised by MOST of Us staff. Advertising agencies are not used because all MOST of Us campaigns are specifically designed to achieve statistically significant results. In order to do so, all media must strictly adhere to the rigor of the social norms approach and the Montana Model of Social Norms Marketing.

Feel free to view examples of this media in our Media Gallery below.

Training

Technical Assistance and Training

MOST of Us has created a methodology that has proven successful in shifting public attitudes and behaviors. We are committed to sharing this methodology, based on the Montana Model of Social Norms Marketing, with other communities and states. In order to achieve statistically significant results, we adhere to the rigor and fidelity of the Montana Model. This is a difficult process that requires technical assistance and training. MOST of Us provides varying levels of each and offers communities the opportunity to start their own MOST of Us campaign through a formal user agreement.

Web Technologies

Interactive Media

MOST of Us has the capability to create educational interactive CD-ROMs. These CD-ROMs can contain enriching content, animated games, and informational quizzes. This technological format can also be targeted at various age groups and address a range of topics such as health, safety, or the environment. Recently, we produced the “Montana Rules” CD-ROM that is intended to help students in grades 7-12 learn about traffic safety and traffic laws in preparation for the driver’s license exam.

MOST of Us Methamphetamine Resource Center: 2005

MOST of Us Services

MOST Of Us provides surveys and marketing services to fit any needs regardless of budget, size, or medium. Click “PCN Training,Tools, and Services” in the Media Gallery below to see a brochure detailing some of the services we provide and some basic price estimates.

If you have any questions, please contact us.