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James F Thrasher, MS, MA, Health Behavior and Health Education, CB#7440, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, School of Public Health, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7440, (919)960-8512, thrasher@email.unc.edu, Jeffrey Niederdeppe, MA, Annenberg School for Communication, University of Pennsylvania, 3620 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19146, Christine Jackson, PhD, Health Behavior and Health Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CB#7440, Rosenau Hall, School of Public Health, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7440, and Matthew Farrelly, PhD, Research Triangle Institute, 3040 Cornwallis Drive, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709.
This analysis examined whether youths’ predispositions to distrust other referent groups might influence their distrust of the tobacco industry. Data were drawn from a nationally representative sample of 4,753 youth, ages 12 to 24, who participated in the spring 2003 cross-sectional survey for the truthrm campaign evaluation. Factor analysis and latent variable structural equation modeling were used to analyze perceived trustworthiness of three referent groups: people, in general; companies, in general; and the tobacco industry. The existence of three distinct factors was confirmed; inter-item reliability was reasonable for scales on distrust of people (α=0.58), companies (α=0.63), and the tobacco industry (α=0.67); and fit statistics for the measurement model were good (RMSEA=0.06; AGFI=0.91; IFI=0.90). In the latent variable structural equation model: the distrust of companies==>distrust of the tobacco industry path was positive and statistically significant (β=0.84); the distrust of people==>distrust of the tobacco industry path was negative and statistically significant (γ=-0.11); and the distrust of people==>distrust of companies path was positive and statistically significant (γ=0.31; indirect effect of distrust of people on distrust of the tobacco industry=0.31*0.84=0.26). Models stratified by age, sex, and smoking status indicated no significant group differences in the path coefficient estimates associated with distrust of the tobacco industry; however, the path coefficients for distrust of people==>distrust of companies were stronger for current smokers and 18-24 year olds than for non-smokers and 12-17 year olds, respectively. These results suggest that development of prevention messages that foster anti-tobacco industry attitudes might benefit from attending to youths’ predispositions toward trusting others.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Health Communications, Tobacco Control
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.