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Abstract

Substantial efforts devoted to decreasing the burden of transport-related injuries (TRIs) in Canada, including public awareness campaigns aiming to influence attitudes and behaviors, may lead the public to perceive other types of injuries differently. This study examined the relationship between public perception of the preventability of injuries and the type of injury (TRIs vs. non-transport unintentional injuries (NTUIs)); and assessed whether exposure to a social marketing campaign (Preventable) influenced this association. A cross-sectional study design employed survey data collected by Preventable between 2015 and 2016 from 1501 British Columbians aged 25–54 years. A multiple linear regression model was applied to examine the relationship between the type of injury (TRIs vs. NTUIs) and attitudes towards preventability, controlling for socio-demographic variables. Exposure to the campaign was tested as an effect modifier. On a scale from 1 to 10, respondents perceived TRIs to be 1.08 points more preventable than NTUIs (95% CI: 1.00 to 1.16, p-value