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Spotlight Session
Strengthening the Impact of Fire and Life Safety Messages on Children
Track(s): Public Education

Dina Borzekowski, Andrea Gielen and Rajiv Rimal, Johns Hopkins University

Audio Sample:




NFPA received a fire prevention grant from the Department of Homeland Security to examine the impact of positively framed fire and life safety messages on children ages 4 through 9. We looked at the difference between positively and negatively framed messages on children's attention, comprehension, and behavioral intention. A total of 640 children and their parents participated in the project. Results of the study will be presented and attendees will receive an important tool to evaluate fire and life safety materials and provide guidance on creating educational materials.

Dina Borzekowski is an internationally recognized expert in the area of children, media, and health. in the research and development of Sesame Street, Degrassi Junior High, Where in the World I Carmen San Diego? and Zoom. research involves studying how youth come to use media and how media has an impact on children and adolescents. In her studies, she has examined of the influence of televised food messages on preschool children, the impact of smoking advertisements and promotions on adolescents, the perception of anti-violence messages on TV, and the relationship between media use and weight among elementary and high school youth. Currently, she is an NIH-funded researcher and is the Principal Investigator on a laboratory-based observational study, housed at Johns Hopkins and at Stanford University, researching individuals' strategies and success in using the Internet as health information source.

Dr. Andrea Gielen is the Professor in the Department of Health, Behavior and Society and Director of the Center for Injury Research and Policy in the Department of Health Policy and Management. Dr. Gielen has twenty-six years of public health experience, which includes as a health-department and health-education practitioner and as an academic research directing federally funded studies of health behaviors. Dr. Gielen's injury areas of special interest are home injuries cause by fires and burns, poisoning and falls and motor vehicle related injuries in childhood, and intimate partner violence and HIV/AIDS risk. Her work in fire safety has included evaluating smoke alarm promotion programs in communities, Fire and Life Safety programs in Delaware and Pennsylvania, and a national survey of fire department prevention programs conducted in partnership with the Home Safety Council.

Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr. Rimal brings 15 years of expertise in health communication and risk communication research. He has served as the Chair of the Health Communication Division of both the International Communication Association and the National Communication Association. He has considerable experience in risk communication and evaluation of health programs. Particularly as they pertain to the design and dissemination of risk- and norms-based health messages. His work has focused on the role that risk-induced anxiety plays in people's information seeking motivations and their information-processing abilities. He recently evaluated the effect on young Egyptian children's math ability, verbal ability, and gender attitudes as a result of exposure to Alam Simsim, The Sesame Street equivalent program in Eqypt.