Does Q&A Boost Engagement? Health Messaging Experiments in the United States and Ghana
Management Science · 2026 · Erika L. Kirgios、Susan Athey、Angela L. Duckworth、Dean Karlan、Michael Luca、Katherine L. Milkman
中文摘要
有效的信息共享对于组织和政府的成功至关重要。由于易于获取的信息更可能被采纳，领导者往往尽量减少信息传递中的摩擦。然而，有一类摩擦反而可能提升参与度：在传递信息之前提出相关问题以激发好奇心。为检验这一点，我们在加纳和密歇根州开展了两项预注册的田野实验（总样本量 n = 49,395），以问答形式或直接陈述的形式传递完全相同的关于 COVID-19 的信息。问答式沟通使受访者对直接相关主题（例如如何正确佩戴口罩）的信息搜寻在加纳增加了 1.0 个百分点（216%），在密歇根州增加了 1.1 个百分点（19%）（p 值均 < 0.001），并使密歇根州自报的行为改变增加了 1.3 个百分点（4%）（p = 0.002）。然而，以问答形式传递信息在两种情境下均未提升对一般性 COVID-19 信息的兴趣，这表明问答式信息传递对信息搜寻的影响可能具有议题特异性。在密歇根州，问答式信息传递和直接陈述式信息传递所引发的信息搜寻均少于不发送任何信息性消息的情形，这很可能源于差异化流失：参与者收到的短信越多，越可能选择退出接收消息，从而无法再通过短信搜寻更多信息。在一项使用社交媒体广告的后续实施实验（该信息传递策略不存在流失问题）中，问答式广告每花费一美元为 CDC 网站带来的独立点击量比直接陈述疫苗相关信息的广告多 9%–11%（p < 0.001）。我们推测，问答式的信息传递方式可能激发了好奇心，从而带来上述收益。本文由行为经济学与决策分析领域编辑 Marie Claire Villeval 接收。基金资助：作者感谢美国国家科学基金会 [RAPID Grant 2033321]、比尔及梅琳达·盖茨基金会、西北大学全球贫困研究实验室、斯坦福大学 Golub Capital 社会影响实验室、哈佛商学院、宾夕法尼亚大学、AKO 基金会、John Alexander、Mark J. Leder 和 Warren G. Lichtenstein 的资助支持。本研究还得到 Grand Challenges in Global Health 的支持。补充材料：补充材料与数据文件可在 https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2024.04405 获取。
Abstract
Effective information sharing is critical for the success of organizations and governments. Because information that is easy to access is more likely to be adopted, leaders often minimize friction in information delivery. However, one type of friction may increase engagement: piquing curiosity by posing relevant questions prior to sharing information. To test this, we shared identical information about COVID-19 in either question-and-answer format or via direct statements across two preregistered field experiments in Ghana and Michigan (total n = 49,395). Q&A-style communication increased information seeking about directly related topics (e.g., how to wear a mask properly) by 1.0 percentage point (216%) in Ghana and by 1.1 percentage points (19%) in Michigan (p’s < 0.001) and increased self-reported behavior change by 1.3 percentage points (4%) in Michigan (p = 0.002). However, sharing information in Q&A format did not increase interest in general COVID-19 information in either setting, suggesting that the impact of Q&A-style messaging on information seeking may be issue specific. In Michigan, both Q&A-style and direct statement messaging produced less information seeking than sending no informational messages, likely because of differential attrition: the more texts participants received, the more likely they were to opt out of receiving messages, which made it impossible for them to seek more information via text. In a follow-up implementation experiment with social media ads (a messaging strategy without attrition challenges), Q&A-style ads generated 9%–11% more unique clicks to the CDC website per dollar spent than ads that directly stated information about vaccines (p < 0.001). We speculate that Q&A-style information delivery may stimulate curiosity, driving its benefits. This paper was accepted by Marie Claire Villeval, behavioral economics and decision analysis. Funding: The authors thank the National Science Foundation [RAPID Grant 2033321], the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Northwestern University’s Global Poverty Research Lab, Stanford University’s Golub Capital Social Impact Lab, Harvard Business School, the University of Pennsylvania, the AKO Foundation, John Alexander, Mark J. Leder, and Warren G. Lichtenstein for funding support. This work was also supported by Grand Challenges in Global Health. Supplemental Material: The supplementary materials and data files are available at https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2024.04405 .