Wild mushroom poisoning represents a significant global public health challenge, with China experiencing particularly high incidence rates. Despite continuous prevention campaigns by government and health authorities, existing educational videos demonstrate variable effectiveness and lack culturally adapted strategies for diverse audiences. Specifically, evidence on which narrative strategies engage young audiences across high-tradition and low-tradition cultural contexts remains limited.
This qualitative study aimed to identify effective narrative characteristics in wild mushroom poisoning prevention videos and explore how cultural backgrounds influence university students’ reception of prevention messages, thereby providing evidence-based recommendations for targeted educational content development.
We conducted four focus group discussions at a university in Fujian Province, recruiting 33 university students through purposive sampling stratified by geographic origin and sex, including students from Yunnan Province (n=9) and other provinces (n=24). Six prevention videos representing different narrative approaches were presented for discussion. Data were analysed using Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis framework. Two coders independently double-coded a 30% subsample (Cohen’s =0.81; 95% CI 0.77 to 0.85), and findings were verified through a two-stage member-checking process.
Three major themes emerged from the analysis: (1) authenticity and consequence visualisation as persuasion mechanisms—participants emphasised the impact of real cases and mortality data; (2) cultural traditions as moderators of risk perception—8 of 9 Yunnan participants rejected complete-avoidance messaging and endorsed harm-reduction strategies, whereas all 24 non-Yunnan participants endorsed regulatory and avoidance approaches; (3) digital media expectations and content preferences—participants expressed preferences for short-form, interactive content adapted to social media platforms. Cultural background significantly influenced acceptance of prevention strategies, with Yunnan participants favouring risk reduction over complete avoidance approaches.
Effective wild mushroom poisoning prevention videos must consider audiences’ cultural contexts, media consumption patterns and cognitive characteristics. We recommend differentiated narrative strategies: emphasising scientific foraging methods and risk identification for regions with strong mushroom traditions while highlighting severe consequences for regions without such traditions. Video production should integrate authentic cases, innovative formats and platform-specific characteristics for optimal engagement.