Article type
Abstract
"Background: In Canadian youth (i.e., 15 to 34 years old), perceived cannabis use-related risks have decreased while cannabis use and preventable harms (e.g., cannabis-attributable hospitalizations) have increased since cannabis was legalized. Given that youth report social media as their primary source for cannabis education, social media platforms present a unique opportunity for researchers to disseminate evidence-based information to youth and to counter substance use-related misinformation, which has been on the rise. Few cannabis-focused science communication projects exist on social media and there is limited understanding of factors influencing the engagement of youth with such initiatives.
Objectives: This case study aims to identify predictors of public engagement with an Instagram-based science communication project on cannabis use and mental health.
Methods: Launched in 2021, with a community of over 1,350 global users, The Brain Diaries is a science communication project aiming to disseminate evidence-based cannabis research in English and French through permanent publications (“posts”) and temporary publications (“stories”). In-app Instagram data metrics of The Brain Diaries, including user demographics, video plays, likes, shares, watch time, will be extracted. Additionally, publication-specific data (e.g., topic, length, publication timing) will be extracted. Exploratory analyses will be conducted to identify factors (e.g., publication timing, video length, topic) influencing engagement, as measured by post or story “likes”. Analyses of factors affecting engagement will be conducted using two-tailed unpaired t-tests or one-way ANOVAs with Tukey correction for multiple post-hoc comparisons. Simple linear regressions will be performed to explore relationships between variables of interest.
Results: Instagram data metrics will be analyzed to identify potential factors influencing engagement of posts (n=41) and stories (n=100). Demographic data for account users and factors predicting engagement in publications or stories will be presented.
Conclusion: These findings can shed light on factors influencing effective science translation for youth for trending, often-misunderstood topics such as cannabis and mental health. As youth cannabis use-related preventable harms and substance use misinformation increase, improving science translation initiatives and leveraging social media can also empower this demographic to be part of the solution to this public health problem. "
Objectives: This case study aims to identify predictors of public engagement with an Instagram-based science communication project on cannabis use and mental health.
Methods: Launched in 2021, with a community of over 1,350 global users, The Brain Diaries is a science communication project aiming to disseminate evidence-based cannabis research in English and French through permanent publications (“posts”) and temporary publications (“stories”). In-app Instagram data metrics of The Brain Diaries, including user demographics, video plays, likes, shares, watch time, will be extracted. Additionally, publication-specific data (e.g., topic, length, publication timing) will be extracted. Exploratory analyses will be conducted to identify factors (e.g., publication timing, video length, topic) influencing engagement, as measured by post or story “likes”. Analyses of factors affecting engagement will be conducted using two-tailed unpaired t-tests or one-way ANOVAs with Tukey correction for multiple post-hoc comparisons. Simple linear regressions will be performed to explore relationships between variables of interest.
Results: Instagram data metrics will be analyzed to identify potential factors influencing engagement of posts (n=41) and stories (n=100). Demographic data for account users and factors predicting engagement in publications or stories will be presented.
Conclusion: These findings can shed light on factors influencing effective science translation for youth for trending, often-misunderstood topics such as cannabis and mental health. As youth cannabis use-related preventable harms and substance use misinformation increase, improving science translation initiatives and leveraging social media can also empower this demographic to be part of the solution to this public health problem. "