Tobacco company documents reveal targeting intentional advertising to adolescents most at-risk for smoking uptake. Their logic being, funds should be invested in adolescents who can be influenced into becoming smokers, not those who'll likely never smoke. Applying analogous logic to the prevention realm suggests focusing anti-smoking messages on adolescents already smoking or at-risk for smoking uptake, not on adolescents who will most likely not become smokers regardless of anti-tobacco efforts. This study utilizes a subset of a school based multimedia tobacco prevention study (N=960) investigating differences between 10th grade smokers (N=45), potential smokers (N=58), and non-smokers (N=123) regarding their perceptions of social and physical smoking variables. Results include: no significant difference regarding students’ exposure to pro/anti smoking messages, and little to no difference regarding the groups' perceptions of long-term harms of smoking. Significant differences were found between at two of the three groups (smokers vs. non-smokers), if not all three groups, regarding perceptions of short term harm, short term benefits, attitudes towards smoking, friends attitudes towards smoking, coolness of musicians and actors who smoke, and parental communication. This data suggests that while there may not be a need to increase the overall quantity of anti-tobacco messages, the types of messages utilized needs to be investigated. Additionally, there is little need to convince adolescents of the long-term harms of smoking, since they are aware of potential harms and still smoke. Furthermore, the data suggests different approaches should be utilized depending on whether messages are targeting non-smokers, potential smokers, or current smoker.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to: 1) identify specific difference in smokers, potential smokers, and non-smokers perceptions of the social and physical harms of smoking 2) learn how such information can be utilized to tailor more effective anti-tobacco messages to specific groups in the youth population.
Keywords: Adolescents, Smoking
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Funded by a grant to Dr. Michael Burgoon (PI) by the Arizona Disease Control Research Commission (#9804)