Laughter, Superheroes, and Health: A Survey of Comics Applied to Health Communication

Background:  Comics are a practical, versatile, and engaging format that has recently attracted increased attention from health communication scholars and practitioners. Recent health comics have aimed to promote healthy behaviors related to vaccines, mental health, nutrition, bullying, HIV/AIDS, infectious disease, asthma and more, in the US and internationally.

Program background:  The application of comics to health challenges covers a diversity of artistic styles, production resources, and dissemination strategies. Some health comics are drawn and written by the very same companies who make mainstream superhero comics, while others are created by amateur artists, health professionals, and children. Health comics also employ a variety of storytelling techniques and theoretical frameworks to increase effectiveness. As the use of health-focused comics matures, researchers are beginning to evaluate the effectiveness of these toosls more rigorously. In this context, we seek to discover what practice recommendations can be gleaned from existing comics already used by health communication programs today.

Evaluation Methods and Results:  This survey review of comics in health communication includes creative examples of comics in public health education and health promotion. These existing communication tools represent a range of intended outcomes, including increasing knowledge, reducing stigma, correcting misconceptions, encouraging specific health behaviors, promoting awareness, and more. Our content analysis identifies how sequential art is a unique health literacy tool, different from other forms of visual design and text-only content. The sequential art of comics conveys information through the dynamic relationship between words and pictures.

Conclusions:  In comics, the economical use of text and the strategic ordering of visuals that guide the reader’s experience are essential features of the medium. Additionally, comics make use of symbols and metaphors that transmit meaning beyond language. With most health communication interventions facing health literacy challenges, comics are a potential solution, because it is a uniquely accessible format for children, adults with low literacy skills, and populations with limited English proficiency.

Implications for research and/or practice:  The presenters will make practice recommendations that can inform creative and communication decisions for general visual design of health communication content, as well as for the many practitioners using comics-style communication.