Fear and fire: Ethical social marketing strategies for home fire safety for older people

Bird, Sara; Tapp, Alan

Abstract

Avon Fire & Rescue Service use social marketing interventions to improve home fire safety amongst older people (aged 65+) in deprived areas of Bristol, UK, and this research seeks to identify the key triggers and barriers to behaviour change. Attitudes to fire and fire safety are explored, as are wider issues of the likelihood of behaviour change, and influential parties and media. We conclude that deprived older people present specific challenges to traditional social marketing strategies due to the diversity of the population and lack of research into effective segmentation. Deeply ingrained habits and routines resist behaviour change, with ethical implications for attempting to do so. The likely triggers to behaviour change are also deeply distressing, related to loss of life, pets, possessions or independence. This suggests that more subtle approaches are required using credible third parties such as daughters/sons, local news media and the Fire & Rescue Service themselves, requiring direct, one-off interventions that are more likely to be achievable than long-term sustained behaviour change.

Citation

Bird, S., & Tapp, A. (2011, April). Fear and fire: Ethical social marketing strategies for home fire safety for older people. Paper presented at World Social Marketing Conference, Dublin, Ireland

• Presentation Conference Type: Conference Paper (unpublished)
• Conference Name: World Social Marketing Conference
• Conference Location: Dublin, Ireland
• Start Date: Apr 11, 2011
• End Date: Apr 12, 2011
• Publication Date: Apr 12, 2011
• Deposit Date: May 25, 2011
• Publicly Available Date: Nov 6, 2016
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Keywords: older people, home, fire safety, social marketing
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/963462
• Publisher URL: http://wsmconference.com/downloads/12S9S11%20Sara%20Bird.pdf
• Additional Information: Corporate Creators : Helen Lancaster Research, Rosa Clarke, Avon Fire & Rescue Service