Mindfulness messages on napkins: The efficacy of dining hall napkins as a messaging channel.

Publisher: Routledge Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 8214119 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1940-3208 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 07448481 NLM ISO Abbreviation: J Am Coll Health Subsets: MEDLINE

Publication: 2010- : New York : Routledge
Original Publication: [Washington, D.C. : Published by the Helen Dwight Reid Educational Foundation, in cooperation with the American College Health Association, c1982-

Students*/psychology ; Students*/statistics & numerical data ; Mindfulness*/methods ; Health Promotion*/methods; Humans ; Female ; Male ; Universities/organization & administration ; Young Adult ; Adolescent ; Adult ; Surveys and Questionnaires

Objective: To assess the efficacy of utilizing dining hall napkins as a novel health messaging strategy to promote mindfulness.
Participants: Undergraduate students at a large Midwestern university.
Methods: Utilizing a place-based promotional strategy, mindfulness messages were printed on over 8-million napkins at dining halls. Surveys (N = 573) were used to measure message viewership, and attitudes toward mindfulness.
Results: While only a few small significant effects for students who read the messaging were found (e.g., increases in self-efficacy for keeping ones phone out of sight while speaking with someone), napkins appeared to be a successful channel for reaching students. About 97% of students who dined in-person indicated they saw the napkin messaging. Additionally, students were more likely to read the napkin messaging when dining in-person rather than when they took their food "to-go."
Conclusion: Future research should continue to test napkins' efficacy as a messaging channel for health messaging for college students.

Keywords: Campus dining channels; mindfulness; napkins

Date Created: 20220527 Date Completed: 20240528 Latest Revision: 20240528

20240529

10.1080/07448481.2022.2071620

35622993