A qualitative inquiry of Malawian radio listeners' attitudes and perceived outcomes of alcohol use using a mobile data collection platform

Introduction and Aims: Alcohol use has been associated with an increased risk of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) transmission in sub-Saharan Africa. Despite this association, there are little data on drinking behaviours in Malawi, a country located in southern Africa. Utilising alternative techniques of data collection, such as mobile technology, may be necessary to eliminate this dearth of information. We use listeners' text messages (SMS) in response to a Malawian radio show to assess listeners' attitudes and perceived outcomes of drinking. Design and Methods: Mobile phones provide a novel, low-cost platform from which to gather qualitative data directly from target audiences. To demonstrate the utility of a mobile data collection approach, we analysed listener feedback in the form of SMS in response to a Malawian radio show. Results: As emergent themes indicate that the perceived outcomes of consumption affect different levels within a social system, results are stratified within a socioecological framework to identify perceived individual, household and community level outcomes. Discussion and Conclusions: As the perceived effects of consumption are numerous and impact a wide swath of communities, alcohol consumption must be addressed through multiple levels. The utilisation of anonymous text responses as a data collection methodology may provide an innovative way to understand contributing factors, such as alcohol consumption, to HIV risk exposure.