Nichols and Good discuss the type of anti-smoking campaigns that are most effective.
Nichols and Good discuss the type of anti-smoking campaigns that are most effective. What do they argue? Do you agree? Defend your position.
Nichols & Good (2004) states one hypothesis is that implicit messages are more powerful because they allow adolescents opportunities to make their own decisions. These data suggest that informative approaches are more effective than authoritarian commands. (Nichols & Good, 2004, p.138). Additionally, industry manipulation ads and secondhand smoking ads were reported as highly effective strategies for preventing and stopping youth and adult smoking. (Nichols & Good, 2004, p.138). I agree with Nichols and Good on their assessment that informative approaches are better than authoritarian command approaches. I think when you can explain the seriousness of smoking and the short and long term effects that it has on the human body, I think most people will get the hint and stop smoking. Industry manipulation is terrible and tobacco executives should not be condoning smoking such as the example in the textbook where the executive is thanking a young man on a ventilator for his business, I think it’s wrong, but I do believe when some youth see these images, they will stop smoking. Several youth that I grew up with developed health issues from sitting around their parents in the living while they smoke and some still have issues today from this environment. Some of their parents feel guilty, but there is nothing that they can do because the health related issues are permanent. I have known a lot of family members that have stopped smoking in recent years after experiencing numerous health issues. A few years ago, my father-in-law was told by his doctor that he needed to stop smoking and drinking or else he would end up dead in less than a year. My father-in-law got the message and he has not had a cigarette or alcoholic drink over the past few years and it has preserved his life. A lot of human beings don’t like the authoritarian approach and have a lot of resentment when this style is used to convey a message. When I was in the military I saw this style used a lot and most people did not like these leaders because this leadership style was appropriate for the situation. In this situation, I think individuals should be given the freedom to make a decision on whether they want to smoke cigarettes or not.
REFERENCES
Nichols, S. L., & Good, T. L. (2004). Americas teenagers – myths and realities: Media images, schooling, and the social costs of careless indifference. Mahwah, N.J: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Explain what Nichols and Good argue about creating pessimism about youth. Do you agree with what they argue? Has this week’s readings changed your views about youth? Why or why not?
Nichols and Good draw upon social policy writer Andrew Sullivan’s viewpoints to support the argument that America is pessimistic about youth. Sullivan “has argued that our media is so laced with pessimism, in the forms of violence, sarcasm, and political debate, that as a society we are skeptical about any good news” (Nichols & Good, 2004). Sullivan also pointed out that our society is “influenced by the media’s insatiable appetite for the bad news of the world, an appetite reinforced by our collective interest in it- [therefore,] we are much more likely to embrace pessimism than optimism” (Nichols & Good, 2004).
I agree with this argument, and I would be genuinely surprised if anyone disagreed with it. Generally, American media never highlights the good in the world or what youth are doing right instead of wrong. Our reading this week even made it evident that the media supports the narrative that youth crime is increasing even though it is decreasing in reality. The press seems quick to report bad news or research without questioning its validity. Finding quick and sensational answers or information that paints a pessimistic image of particular groups of people seems to be an attractive option compared to reporting less sensational stories. Perhaps this is because adults, specifically those in positions of influence or power, find it easier to find people to blame instead of investigating the deeper issues rooted in American society. As Nichols, Good, and Sullivan mentioned, Americans have an appetite for these sensationalized stories that only perpetuate the problem.
I am still young, 23 years old, and I am optimistic about Gen Z and Millennials. Therefore, it is not surprising to say that this week’s readings have not changed my views about youth. I know firsthand how youth are painted in an undeservingly lousy image. I was a teenager who did not engage in any “deviant” behavior; however, I was frequently accused of secretly doing so by one of my parents because “that’s just how teenagers are.” I was not surprised to read about the sensationalism about how “bad” American youth are and how adults have the appetite for this type of news. Teenage crime and TAD use will always be present, but it is not because youth are “getting worse” but instead due to environmental factors that mostly adults are responsible for. Teenagers will continue to engage in “deviant” behavior as long as they continue to grow up in a society that promotes paradoxical ideals, have a lack of adult mentorship, or live in impoverished conditions.
References
Nichols, S. L., & Good, T. L. (2004). Americas teenagers – myths and realities: Media images, schooling, and the social costs of careless indifference. Mahwah, N.J: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
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