How to create social media contents based on Motivational Interviewing approach to support tobacco use cessation? A content analysis

This study aimed at identifying which types of social media content could achieve positive differences in Facebook users’ interactions and smokers’ motivational language between posts with and without motivational interviewing (MI) content.

We included 701 Facebook posts (N = 701) which were categorized into five different groups according to specific MI strategies. The control group comprised entertaining and informative posts. Primary outcomes were Facebook users’ interactions: engagement rate, negative feedback, and fan-total reach ratio. Secondary outcomes were Facebook post comments reflecting smokers’ motivational language: change talk and sustain talk.

Facebook posts which used MI strategies were associated with significantly higher engagement rate, higher fan-total reach ratio, and more change talk compared to the control group. Of specific MI strategies, “elaborating change talk” strategies elicited considerably more change talk. “Affirming change talk” strategies obtained higher fan-total reach ratio and generated significantly more change talk. Finally, “relational MI” strategies achieved significantly higher engagement rate..

Social media contents based on MI increased engagement and generated conversation about tobacco use cessation without relevant negative feedback. The findings suggest that MI strategies may play a promising role in creation of social media contents to support tobacco use cessation.