Published: 29 March 2022
An independent evaluation by Bangor University and Public Health Wales’ World Health Organization Collaborating Centre (WHO CC) of a short film promoting kindness in Wales during COVID-19 restrictions, has found that films that provoke strong emotional reactions can still be perceived positively and lead to effective behaviour change.
The evaluation of the #TimeToBeKind campaign has been published in the BMC Public Health, a peer-reviewed, open access journal within science, technology, engineering and medicine.
In response to successive COVID-19 restrictions in Wales, the Welsh Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Support Hub, based in the WHO CC, launched the #TimeToBeKind campaign in March 2021. The campaign used a short film broadcast on national television and promoted on social media to encourage behaviour change for kindness.
Mark Bellis, Director of the World Health Organisation Collaborating Centre at Public Health Wales said:
“The evaluation sought to understand people’s opinions on the #TimeToBeKind film and to find out more about people’s views on the film, how viewing the film made them feel and if they would do anything differently after watching it.
“We found that film can be a highly effective tool to promote behaviour change for kindness. With the COVID-19 pandemic accelerating a move online for many, the findings of the present evaluation are relevant to how public health messaging can adapt and utilise this space to target individuals and promote behaviour change now and in the future.”