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Communication can be a powerful tool for helping meet public health objectives, including eliminating disparities in disease burden that exist between different population subgroups. Health information culturally appropriate for a specific group may be more effective in capturing attention, stimulating information processing, and motivating changes in health behavior than information that does not integrate culture. This article (a) describes and compares different communication strategies and message tactics for integrating culture into health information; (b) examines in detail the process and impact of tailoring cancer prevention and screening information to African American women based on their individual levels of religiosity, collectivism, racial pride, and time orientation; and (c) critically analyzes data from a cultural tailoring study to illustrate pros and cons of customizing health information to the cultural characteristics of a population subgroup versus different individuals within that group.

Purpose. Characterize mobile technology ownership, use, and relationship to self-reported cancer prevention behaviors and health status in a diverse, low-income sample of callers to 2-1-1. Design. Secondary analyses of cross-sectional survey data from a larger trial collected from June 2010 to December 2012. Setting. United Way Missouri 2-1-1 serves 99 of 114 counties and received 166,000 calls in 2011. Subjects. The respondents (baseline, n = 1898; 4 month, n = 1242) were predominantly female, non-Hispanic Black, younger than 50 years, with high-school education or less and annual income < $20,000. Measures. Cell phone ownership and use and its relationship to cancer prevention services and health status were assessed via telephone-based survey, using items adapted from previous research and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Smartphone ownership and use were also assessed. Analysis. Descriptive statistics and bivariate and multivariate associations between cell phone ownership and prevention and health status are reported. Results. Three-fourths (74%) of study participants owned a cell phone and 23% owned a smartphone. Text messaging was the most popular use. Ownership was significantly associated with good to excellent health status and presence of smoke-free home policies in multivariate models. Conclusion. Cell phone ownership is growing and has potential to deliver health information to low-income populations. With 16 million calls annually, the national 2-1-1 system may be a promising model and platform.

Through the use of new technologies, researchers, and practitioners in health education and health communication can now provide health information and behavior change strategies that are customized based on the unique needs, interests, and concerns of different individuals. These tailored health messages can be highly effective in assisting individuals in understanding and responding to health concerns. In this volume, Matthew Kreuter, David Farrell, and their colleagues define the process of tailoring and describe its uses in health communication programs. They present a theoretica

The Cancer Prevention and Control Research Network (CPCRN) surveyed 282 cancer control planners to inform its efforts to increase the use of evidence-based cancer control programs (EBPs; programs that have been scientifically tested and successfully changed behavior). Respondents included planners from organizations in state Comprehensive Cancer Control coalitions as well as other governmental and non-governmental organizations, and community-based coalitions. Respondents provided information about personal and organizational characteristics, their cancer control programs, their attitudes toward EBPs, and their awareness and use of Web-based resources for EBPs. Although findings showed strong preferences for cancer control programs that have been shown to work, less than half of respondents (48%) had ever used EBP resources. Regardless of whether they had used EBP resources, almost all respondents (97%) indicated that further training would help them and their organization adopt and adapt EBPs for use in their communities. The most frequently endorsed training needs were finding and securing additional resources (such as funding and technical assistance), followed by adapting EBPs for cultural appropriateness. The CPCRN consortium is using these findings to develop a Web-based interactive training and decision support tool that is responsive to the needs identified by the survey respondents.