Exploring Smoking Stigma, Alternative Tobacco Product Use, & Quit Attempts

Cati G Brown-Johnson; Lucy Popova

doi:10.14485/HBPR.3.1.2

Exploring Smoking Stigma, Alternative Tobacco Product Use, & Quit Attempts

Health Behav Policy Rev. 2016 Jan 1;3(1):13-20. doi: 10.14485/HBPR.3.1.2.

Authors

Cati G Brown-Johnson¹, Lucy Popova²

Affiliations

¹ Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford Prevention Research Center, Department of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA.
² Research Scholar, Center for Tobacco Control Research and Education, University of California San Francisco, CA.

Abstract

Objectives: Investigate smoking stigma among different tobacco user types.

Methods: US adults (N=1,812) responded to an online survey, including non-smokers, smokeless tobacco users, exclusive smokers, and smokeless and cigarette "dual users".

Results: Dual users perceived the highest smoking stigma. Stigma was higher for smokers open to quitting by switching to smokeless. E-cigarette users (smokers) reported higher stigma than non-users. Making a past-year quit attempt was predicted by smoking stigma, and smokeless and/or e-cigarette use.

Conclusions: Smoking stigma and dual use of smokeless tobacco and/or e-cigarettes with cigarettes predict quit attempts. However, smoking stigma might prevent smokers from consulting doctors and induce use of alternative tobacco products as cessation aids.

Keywords: : Smoking stigma; cessation; e-cigarettes; guilt; shame; smokeless tobacco.

Abstract

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