The 13th World Conference on Tobacco OR Health

Objective: The key issue of the program is to make children understand the message of the cherry symbol and to make them accept it at different stages of the development of their personality. If we manage to make a whole generation accept the symbol as the emblem of non-smoking, then if a smoker notices this symbol in a room, he will hopefully not light his cigarette, or if he still will, the non-smoking person, protecting his own health, will feel a more instinctive motivation to demand the smoker to throw away his cigarette.

Methods: In order to achieve these objectives, we needed an interactive, smoking-related game, which is attractive enough to draw childrenxs attention even in the breaks and in their leisure time in the afternoons. The well designed computer program will become an effective method of preventive work. One main part of the program is the kiosk, consisting of a touch-screen computer and a multifunctional kiosk-house. With the help of the software, you can play with five funny, interesting games: puzzle, painting, memory, game of tag, interactive cartoon. In the model experiment phase of the program, we tested the kiosk in four schools.

Results: The games are perfect for getting children aged six to nine to know the cherry symbol and make them understand its message and to form positive images about non-smoking lifestyle.