Myth vs. Fact—What Do People Really Remember?

Suicide prevention and gatekeeper training programs often use the "Myth vs. Fact" format when presenting information. But what do people really remember?

It turns out, according to two recent published reports, that people often confuse the myths with the facts when trying to remember what they read.

This has led to an advisory issued by the Texas Department of State Health Services and the Texas Suicide Prevention Council not to use the "Myth vs. Fact" format in any training, curriculum, materials or public service announcements.

In one study, researchers looked at health education campaigns designed to motivate people to get vaccinated against the flu. They found that after a delay of 30 minutes, participants who read a "Facts and Myths" flyer about the flu vaccine systemically misremembered myths as facts. They also were less likely to take the desired action of getting vaccinated as compared to those who read a "Facts Only" flyer or the control group who read no flyer.

"People show a bias to think that incompletely remembered information is true, turning 'myths' into 'facts,'" conclude the researchers. "Hence public information campaigns should emphasize information that is true. Repeating false information, even as a warning, can create the unintended consequence of belief in the information."

Schwarz et al also wrote about this phenomenon in the book "Advances in Experimental Social Psychology," Volume 39, published in 2007. "Public information campaigns that confront myths with facts, or warn people that a given claim is false, necessarily reiterate the information they want to discredit. This strategy is successful as long as people remember what is true and what is false. Unfortunately, memory for these details fades quickly."

For more information, read this and other articles in our latest
I AM H･E･R･E Coalition e-newsletter. To see previous e-newsletters, visit www.iamherecoalition.org.

Before You Drop Your Kids Off at College...

This is the time of year when many parents are taking their kids back to college. We talk to them about classes, finances, schedules and the importance of balancing studying with having fun. Yet, how many of us talk to our kids about depression?

More than half of college students interviewed in an mTV poll said they had been so stressed that they couldn’t get work done sometime during the past semester. Emotional disturbances were cited by students as a key impediment to their academic success.

When these problems are not addressed they can lead to serious consequences. Suicide continues to be the second leading cause of death among college students. In fact, recent studies show that one in ten college students have thought about suicide at some point during the past year.

All this underscores the importance of letting your kids know that it’s okay to reach out for help. Tell them about the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, 1-800-273-TALK, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Encourage them to monitor their moods as well as reach out if they think a friend is in trouble.

Visit www.jedfoundation.org for more information and resources for both parents and students.

Run the Rock for the Grant Halliburton Foundation

Want to run the White Rock Marathon on December 13 and raise money for a good cause?

Here’s one! Run for the Grant Halliburton Foundation and help support better mental health for teens and young adults.

You can do the full or half marathon. Run or walk. Do it on your own or on a team. Check it out at www.AllTri.org or come to an informational meeting on August 25. Contact us for details.

We’re getting a new logo and a whole new look!

The graphics for the Grant Halliburton Foundation have a new look, thanks to the generosity and talent of Briley Design Group. We have a new logo, along with stationery, brochures, handouts and more! Now we just need to get it all printed.

Actually, we could get a grant to help with this. Sappi Fine Paper has an annual grant program called Ideas that Matter, which awards grants to design firms who want to donate their skills to non-profit organizations they are passionate about. This year, Briley Design Group in Richardson, Texas, has applied for funding to print our new materials. Check out these designs:

Since the program's inception 10 years ago, Ideas that Matter has awarded $9 million in grants benefiting causes like youth centers, wildlife protection, and health care awareness. We'll find out this fall if Briley Design Group has been awarded the grant.

Great job, coalition members!

What a great meeting we had last week! For this work session, we broke out into seven smaller teams and boy, did they sink their teeth into the material.

Results of our online surveys were incorporated into the work from the June meeting, and each step of the Progression to Wellness model was addressed. The underlying causes for why progression does not happen were really broken down and discussed and then factors such as age, gender, ethnicity and others were examined to see what role they play. We are moving along toward potential solutions, and that’s when things should really get interesting.


We loved our new digs at the Center for Community Cooperation and thank them for hosting us. And, thanks to all who braved the heat to join us for what was a very energetic and enthusiastic meeting.

Stay tuned for more later!