The Media Campaign "Your Chance": Perception and Effects on Smoking Cessation Motivation and Smoking Cessation Attempts

Aims: In 2021, the nationwide media campaign "Your Chance" of the Commissioner for Drug and Addiction Policy and the Federal Ministry of Health was carried out to motivate smokers to quit smoking. The aim of our study was to assess the campaign's perception and its effects on motivation to stop smoking and quit attempts. Methods: In the context of the German Study on Tobacco Use (DEBRA), 1550 smokers were interviewed in the period before the campaign (18.02. to 30.05.2021) and 2330 during the campaign (31.05. to 14.11.2021). Specific questions related to the perception of the campaign and resulting impulses to change smoking behaviour. Potential effects were measured with the Motivation To Stop Scale and with the rate of smokers with at least one quit attempt. Results: A total of 14.5 % (95%CI=13.1-16.0) of smokers perceived the campaign. Regarding age groups, 14-24-year-olds showed the highest rate of perception (19.1 %, 95%CI=14.9-24.0). Low vs. high educational attainment was associated with a lower odds of perception (OR=0.65, 95%CI=0.46-0.93). Among smokers perceiving the campaign, 6.4 % (95%CI=3.0-11.9) gathered more information about the campaign and 13.6 % (95%CI=9.1-19.0) were prompted to think about quitting. Compared with the period before the campaign there was no difference in motivation to stop (OR=0.96, 95%CI=0.85-1.08) or quit at-tempts (OR=0.96, 95%CI=0.69-1.35) during the campaign. "scussion: The media campaign "Your Chance" probably had no relevant effects on motivation to stop and attempts to quit tobacco in smokers in Germany. More effective tobacco control measures are urgently needed in order to achieve the long-term goal of a smoke-free society.