scholarly journals Understanding public opinion to the introduction of Minimum Unit Pricing in Scotland: a qualitative study using Twitter. (Preprint)

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurence Astill Wright ◽  
Su Golder ◽  
Adam Balkham ◽  
Jim McCambridge
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Policy Implementation ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Economic Consequences ◽  
Alcohol Policy ◽  
Policy Issues ◽  
Related Individuals ◽  
Unit Pricing ◽  
The Uk

BACKGROUND On 1st May 2018 Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) of alcohol was introduced in Scotland to reduce the health, social and economic consequences of greater alcohol consumption when compared to the rest of the UK. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to assess responses to the policy implementation in comments made on Twitter. METHODS All tweets relating to MUP were captured during the two weeks after the introduction of the policy. These tweets were assessed using a mixture of human and machine coding for relevance, sentiment and source. A thematic analysis was conducted. RESULTS 74,639 tweets were collected over 14 days. Study findings demonstrate that opinion on the introduction of MUP in Scotland is divided, as far as is discernible on twitter, with a slightly higher proportion of positive posts, particularly in Scotland itself. Furthermore, 55% of positive tweets/retweets were originally made by health or alcohol policy-related individuals or organisations. Thematic analysis of tweets showed some evidence of misunderstanding around policy issues. CONCLUSIONS It is possible to appreciate the divided nature of public opinion on the introduction of MUP in Scotland using twitter, the nature of the sentiment around it, and key actors involved, and it will be possible to later study how this changes when the policy becomes more established.

scholarly journals Understanding public opinion to the introduction of minimum unit pricing in Scotland: a qualitative study using Twitter

BMJ Open ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. e029690 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurence Astill Wright ◽  
Su Golder ◽  
Adam Balkham ◽  
J McCambridge
Keyword(s):  
Public Opinion ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Media Analysis ◽  
Alcohol Policy ◽  
Social Media Analysis ◽  
Policy Issues ◽  
Related Individuals ◽  
Positive Sentiment ◽  
Twitter Users ◽  
Unit Pricing

ObjectivesOn 1 May 2018 minimum unit pricing (MUP) of alcohol was introduced in Scotland. This study used Twitter posts to quantify sentiment expressed online during the introduction of MUP, conducted a thematic analysis of these perceptions and analysed which Twitter users were associated with which particular sentiments.Design and settingThis qualitative social media analysis captured all tweets relating to MUP during the 2 weeks after the introduction of the policy. These tweets were assessed using a mixture of human and machine coding for relevance, sentiment and source. A thematic analysis was conducted.Participants74 639 tweets were collected over 14 days. Of these 53 574 were relevant to MUP.ResultsStudy findings demonstrate that opinion on the introduction of MUP in Scotland was somewhat divided, as far as is discernible on Twitter, with a slightly higher proportion of positive posts (35%) than negative posts (28%), with positive sentiment stronger in Scotland itself. Furthermore, 55% of positive tweets/retweets were originally made by health or alcohol policy-related individuals or organisations. Thematic analysis of tweets showed some evidence of misunderstanding around policy issues.ConclusionsIt is possible to appreciate the divided nature of public opinion on the introduction of MUP in Scotland using Twitter, the nature of the sentiment around it and the key actors involved. It will be possible to later study how this changes when the policy becomes more established.

scholarly journals Reducing the standard serving size of alcoholic beverages prompts reductions in alcohol consumption

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Inge Kersbergen ◽  
melissa oldham ◽  
Andrew Jones ◽  
Matt Field ◽  
Colin Angus ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Laboratory Study ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Hospital Admissions ◽  
Health Benefit ◽  
Alcohol Policy ◽  
Alcoholic Beverages ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Serving Sizes ◽  
Serving Size

Aims: We tested whether reducing the standard serving size of alcoholic beverages would reduce voluntary alcohol consumption in a laboratory (study 1) and a real-world drinking environment (study 2). Additionally, we modelled the potential public health benefit of reducing the standard serving size of on-trade alcoholic beverages in the UK.Design: Studies 1 and 2 were cluster-randomised experiments. In study 1, participants were randomly assigned to receive standard or reduced serving sizes (by 25%) of alcohol during a laboratory drinking session. In study 2, customers at a bar were served alcohol in either standard or reduced serving sizes (by 28.6% – 33.3%). Finally, we used the Sheffield Alcohol Policy Model to estimate the number of deaths and hospital admissions that would be averted per year in the UK if a policy that reduces alcohol serving sizes in the on-trade was introduced.Setting: A semi-naturalistic laboratory (study 1), a bar in Liverpool, UK (study 2).Participants: Students and university staff members (study 1: N = 114, mean age 24.8 years, 74.6% female), residents from local community (study 2: N = 164, mean age 34.9 years, 57.3% female).Measurements: Outcome measures were units of alcohol consumed within one hour (study 1) and up to three hours (study 2). Serving size condition was the primary predictor. Findings: In study 1, a 25% reduction in alcohol serving size led to a 20.7% - 22.3% reduction in alcohol consumption. In study 2, a 28.6% - 33.3% reduction in alcohol serving size led to a 32.4% - 39.6% reduction in alcohol consumption. Modelling results indicated that decreasing the serving size of on-trade alcoholic beverages by 25% could reduce the number of alcohol-related hospital admissions and deaths per year in the UK by 4.4% - 10.5% and 5.6% - 13.2%, respectively. Conclusions: Reducing the serving size of alcoholic beverages leads to a reduction in alcohol consumption within a single drinking occasion. Reducing the standard serving sizes of alcoholic beverages may reduce alcohol consumption and alcohol-related harm at the population level.

scholarly journals The Scottish case: minimum unit pricing for alcohol

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
S Hilton ◽  
S V Katikireddi
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Public Health Intervention ◽  
Alcohol Policy ◽  
Unit Price ◽  
Policy Network ◽  
Pricing Policy ◽  
Licensed Premises ◽  
Vested Interests ◽  
Unit Pricing

Abstract There have been longstanding social and public health concerns about the levels of harmful alcohol consumption in Scotland. The Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) (Scotland) Act 2012 targets all alcohol sold through licensed premises in Scotland by ensuring it cannot be sold below a set minimum unit price. The pricing policy is currently set at 50p per unit of alcohol. Following a legal challenge and a vote in the Scottish Parliament, minimum unit pricing was implemented in Scotland on 1 May 2018. The aim of the Scottish alcohol policy has been to reduce the adverse public health consequences of alcohol consumption. It has also been identified as a potential measure for reducing health inequalities since alcohol-related harms are strongly socially patterned. The Scottish alcohol policy is important case to consider for a number of reasons. First, the nature of the policy differs. Rather than the introduction of a variable floor price, which may encourage switching in consumption from one product to another to maintain alcohol intake, minimum unit pricing introduces a price threshold that is uniform across all alcohol products. Second, minimum unit pricing is being introduced into a competitive commercial environment with strong vested interests, rather than a government-controlled monopoly. Third, the policy has been framed as a public health intervention, rather than primarily for revenue-raising reasons. Research on its development and evaluation will be considered to inform broader discussions on policy advocacy. Here we show a visualisation of the minimum unit pricing policy network to highlight how the public health community could work in more coordinated manner to support alcohol policy interventions.

scholarly journals Government Options to Reduce the Impact of Alcohol on Human Health: Obstacles to Effective Policy Implementation

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 2846
Author(s):  
Tim Stockwell ◽  
Norman Giesbrecht ◽  
Kate Vallance ◽  
Ashley Wettlaufer
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Policy Implementation ◽  
Public Awareness ◽  
Economic Benefits ◽  
Alcohol Policy ◽  
Alcohol Policies ◽  
Health Community ◽  
Vested Interests ◽  
Unit Pricing ◽  
The Impact

Evidence for effective government policies to reduce exposure to alcohol’s carcinogenic and hepatoxic effects has strengthened in recent decades. Policies with the strongest evidence involve reducing the affordability, availability and cultural acceptability of alcohol. However, policies that reduce population consumption compete with powerful commercial vested interests. This paper draws on the Canadian Alcohol Policy Evaluation (CAPE), a formal assessment of effective government action on alcohol across Canadian jurisdictions. It also draws on alcohol policy case studies elsewhere involving attempts to introduce minimum unit pricing and cancer warning labels on alcohol containers. Canadian governments collectively received a failing grade (F) for alcohol policy implementation during the most recent CAPE assessment in 2017. However, had the best practices observed in any one jurisdiction been implemented consistently, Canada would have received an A grade. Resistance to effective alcohol policies is due to (1) lack of public awareness of both need and effectiveness, (2) a lack of government regulatory mechanisms to implement effective policies, (3) alcohol industry lobbying, and (4) a failure from the public health community to promote specific and feasible actions as opposed to general principles, e.g., ‘increased prices’ or ‘reduced affordability’. There is enormous untapped potential in most countries for the implementation of proven strategies to reduce alcohol-related harm. While alcohol policies have weakened in many countries during the COVID-19 pandemic, societies may now also be more accepting of public health-inspired policies with proven effectiveness and potential economic benefits.

scholarly journals ‘Tied up in a legal mess’: The alcohol industry's use of litigation to oppose minimum alcohol pricing in Scotland

2020 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Hawkins ◽  
Jim McCambridge
Keyword(s):  
Policy Process ◽  
Policy Formulation ◽  
Alcohol Policy ◽  
Political Climate ◽  
Pricing Policy ◽  
Legal Challenges ◽  
Scottish Government ◽  
Unit Pricing ◽  
The Uk

This article examines the alcohol industry's legal challenges to minimum unit pricing (MUP) in Scotland through the stages heuristic of the policy process. It builds on previous studies of alcohol pricing policy in Scotland and across the UK, and of the use of legal challenges by health harming industries to oppose health policy globally. Having failed to prevent MUP passing into law, industry actors sought to frustrate the implementation of the legislation via challenges in the Scottish, European and UK courts. However, the relevance of legal challenges is not limited to the post-legislative stage of the policy process but was foreshadowed in all earlier stages of the policy process. The potential for a legal challenge to MUP, and the alcohol industry's clearly articulated intention to pursue such action, was used by industry actors to seek to prevent the adoption of MUP in the agenda setting, policy formulation and legislative stages and created significant ‘regulatory chill’ in other areas of Scottish and UK alcohol policy. Litigation, and the prospect of it, was thus part of a coherent and integrated long-term strategy which adapted to changes in the political climate and to different stages in the policy process. While both the rhetoric and reality of litigation failed to prevent policy implementation, it succeeded in causing a delay of six years, imposing significant costs on the Scottish government and creating policy inertia in Scottish alcohol policy subsequently. Moreover, the inclusion of a ‘sunset clause’ in the legislation, requiring ongoing evaluation of the policy's effects, presents additional opportunities for the industry to reverse MUP. Thus, industry strategies to undermine MUP and delay further alcohol policy developments require ongoing attention by policy actors and scholars.

scholarly journals Understanding international variation in national low-risk drinking guidelines: health policy report

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
V Kirkby
Keyword(s):  
Alcohol Consumption ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Development Process ◽  
Guideline Development ◽  
Low Risk ◽  
Substantial Variation ◽  
Guideline Development Process ◽  
Degree Of Risk ◽  
The Uk

Abstract Background The harmful use of alcohol is associated with adverse health, social, and economic consequences. National low-risk drinking guidelines provide evidence-based advice on how to reduce the risks associated with alcohol consumption and provide a basis for other alcohol-control interventions. There is substantial variation between guidelines and no international consensus on what constitutes 'low-risk' drinking. These discrepancies may lead to misinterpretation of the guidance, and such variation may undermine public confidence in experts and be exploited by the alcohol industry. Methods This project had two main components: (i) a literature review, to identify any new evidence from January 2016 to August 2019 suggesting a recommended threshold for 'low-risk' drinking; (ii) the analysis of six examples of national guidelines. Those from the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and USA were examined for information about the utilisation of evidence to inform guidance, as well as details of the guideline development process. Thematic analysis of the UK, Canadian and Australian guidance explored wider influences on the guidelines. Results The literature review highlighted that all alcohol consumption carries some degree of risk. Content analysis of the guidelines emphasised the substantial variation in national guidance. Differences in the use of evidence and guideline development process may have given rise to at least some of the observed variation. Thematic analysis suggested that wider influences, such as differences in societal values, may also have contributed to disparities in the guidelines. Conclusions It may be possible to standardise certain areas of the development process, such as agreeing what constitutes an 'acceptable' level of alcohol-attributable risk. Further research is required to verify whether these results are generalisable to other countries, and to determine the most appropriate statistical model for risk calculations. Key messages The factors which determine guideline development are manifold and complex. Any level of alcohol consumption carries some degree of risk.

How government-controlled media shifts policy attitudes through framing

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-16
Author(s):  
Jennifer Pan ◽  
Zijie Shao ◽  
Yiqing Xu
Keyword(s):  
Foreign Policy ◽  
Public Opinion ◽  
Authoritarian Regimes ◽  
Policy Positions ◽  
Policy Issues ◽  
Composite Measures ◽  
Policy Attitudes ◽  
Tv News

Abstract Research shows that government-controlled media is an effective tool for authoritarian regimes to shape public opinion. Does government-controlled media remain effective when it is required to support changes in positions that autocrats take on issues? Existing theories do not provide a clear answer to this question, but we often observe authoritarian governments using government media to frame policies in new ways when significant changes in policy positions are required. By conducting an experiment that exposes respondents to government-controlled media—in the form of TV news segments—on issues where the regime substantially changed its policy positions, we find that by framing the same issue differently, government-controlled media moves respondents to adopt policy positions closer to the ones espoused by the regime regardless of individual predisposition. This result holds for domestic and foreign policy issues, for direct and composite measures of attitudes, and persists up to 48 hours after exposure.

scholarly journals ‘Chatting Shit’ in the Jobcentre: Navigating Workfare Policy at the Street-Level

2021 ◽  
pp. 095001702110241
Author(s):  
Jamie Redman
Keyword(s):  
Policy Implementation ◽  
Young Men ◽  
Survival Strategies ◽  
Street Level ◽  
The Uk

Since the mid-1980s, out-of-work benefit receipt in the UK has been increasingly governed by a ‘workfarist’ mesh of conditionality and activation policies. A wealth of research has found that conditionality and activation policies trigger a range of harmful outcomes for benefit claimants. However, this research largely ignores how claimants may struggle against these policies to eschew harmful outcomes. Drawing on longitudinal interviews with 15 young men, this article demonstrates how claimants can subvert policy implementation to prioritise their own needs and interests. It is concluded that claimant struggles against policy implementation most accurately reflect survival strategies and are predominantly rooted in the ‘material nexus’ of class-based inequalities in capitalist societies.

scholarly journals “It’s the Attraction of Winning That Draws You In”—A Qualitative Investigation of Reasons and Facilitators for Videogame Loot Box Engagement in UK Gamers

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 2103
Author(s):  
Laura Nicklin ◽  
Stuart Gordon Spicer ◽  
James Close Close ◽  
Jonathan Parke ◽  
Oliver Smith ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
Social Influences ◽  
Disordered Gambling ◽  
Qualitative Investigation ◽  
Contributing Factors ◽  
Research Priority ◽  
Potential Risks ◽  
Problematic Gambling ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Depth Interviews

Excessive engagement with (increasingly prevalent) loot boxes within games has consistently been linked with disordered gambling and/or gaming. The importance of recognising and managing potential risks associated with loot box involvement means understanding contributing factors is a pressing research priority. Given that motivations for gaming and gambling have been informative in understanding risky engagement with those behaviours, this qualitative study investigated motivations for buying loot boxes, through in-depth interviews with 28 gamers from across the UK. A reflexive thematic analysis categorised reasons for buying into seven “themes”; opening experience; value of box contents; game-related elements; social influences; emotive/impulsive influences; fear of missing out; triggers/facilitators. These themes are described in detail and discussed in relation to the existing literature and motivation theories. This study contributes to understanding ways in which digital items within loot boxes can be highly valued by purchasers, informing the debate around parallels with gambling. Findings that certain motivations were disproportionately endorsed by participants with symptoms of problematic gambling has potential implications for policy and warrants further study.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document