Teens and SmokingAbstractCigarette smoking is of interest to the National Institute on Drug Abuse bothbecause of the public health problems associated with this form of substanceabuse and because this behavior represents a prototypic dependence process. Inthe past few years the government has made every effort to reach the masses, inan attempt to curb the exploitation of tobbacco use, and its acceptance amongAmericas Youngsters. However, cigarette smoking among adolescents is on therise. The premise that the behavior of adolescents is influenced by the behavior oftheir parents is central to many considerations of health and social behavior(Ausubel, Montemayor, & Svajiian, 1977; Bandura & Walters, 1963).
Many youngpeople between 10-18 years of age experiment with smoking, smoking is apersonal choice, and usually exploratory in nature. Typically, it takes placein rather young people and is largely dependent on: first, the availability ofopportunity to engage in the behavior, second, having a fairly high degree ofcuriosity about the effects of the behavior; third, in finding it a way ofexpressing either conformity to the behavior or others (such as parents, oldersiblings or peers), forth, as in “Miller and Dollar’s” explanation ofObservational Learning, The Copying behavior effect. This research is to examine the effects of parental smoking (behavior), has, onthe decision of teens to smoke cigarettes. Due to prior studies using globalmeasures that may or may not include South Eastern North Carolina. TheFayetteville/Fort Bragg area was chosen for this study to pinpoint the effectsin this particular locale.
Fort Bragg and Pope Air Force Base have a verydiverse socieo-economic and culturally diverse population, which will have apositive effect on randomness of sample selection. With this association inmind, this researcher is interested in knowing if there is a relationship ofParental influence on Teen Smoking within this Military Community. IntroductionThe prevalence of cigarette smoking among young teenagers is a growingproblem in the United States, many young people between the ages of 10-18 areexperimenting with tobacco. During the 1040’s and 50’s smoking was popular andsocially acceptable.
Movie stars, sports heroes, and celebrities appeared incigarette advertisements that promoted and heavily influenced teens. Influencealso came from Television and other media sources. The desires to be acceptedand to feel grown up are among the most common reasons to start smoking. Yet,even though teenagers sometimes smoke to gain independence, and to be part ofthe crowd parental influence plays the strongest role as to whether or theirchildren will smoke, Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA), 1991.
Children are exposed to and influenced by the parents, siblings, and the medialong before peer pressure will become a factor. Mothers should not smoke duringpregnancy, nicotine, which crosses the placental barrier, may affect the femalefetus during an important period of development so as to predispose the brainto the addictive influence of nicotine. Prenatal exposure to smoking haspreviously been linked with impairments in memory, learning, cognition, andperception in the growing child. (National Institute of Drug Abuse, 1995)Subsequent follow-up after 12 years suggest that regardless of the amount orduration of current or past maternal smoking, the strongest correlation betweenmaternal smoking and a daughter’s smoking occurred when the mother smokedduring pregnancy.
NIDA also reported that of 192 mothers and their first bornadolescents with a mean age of 12 1/2, the analysis revealed that 26. 6% of thegirls whose mother smoked while pregnant had smoked in the past year. The 1991 smoking prevalence estimate of 25. 7% is virtually no different from theprevious year’s estimate of 25. 5%.
If current trends persist, we will not meetone of the nation’s health objectives, particularly a smoking prevalence of nomore than 15% by the year 2000. When comparing the use of alcohol, cigarettes,and other drugs, only cigarette use did not decline substantially among highschool senior among 1981 to 1991. In contrast studies performed by “householdsurvey” by the NIDA and the CDC, (Centers for Disease Control) in 1991 and 92respectively, suggested that the strongest influence on teenage smoking isparents. Research also revealed that approximately three fourths of adultregular smokers smoke their first cigarette before the age of 18. This data wasacquired while trying to determine the brand preferences of young smokers todetermine what encouraged them to smoke and to suggest smoking prevention orsmoking cessation strategies, the studies found that in over 80% of thehouseholds surveyed, one or both parents smoked. Many teenagers begin smokingto feel grow-up.
However, if they are still smoking when they reach 30, thereason is no longer to feel like an adult; at this point, they are smoking fromhabit. Goodwin, D. W. , Guze, S.
B. (1984). Young children who see olderchildren or family members smoking cigarettes are going to equate smoking withbeing grown up. Patterns of both drinking and smoking, which are closelyassociated, are strongly influenced by the lifestyles of family members peersand by the environments in which they live.
Minimal, moderate, and heavy levelsof drinking, smoking, and drug use, among family members are stronglyassociated with very similar patterns of use among adolescents. Bentler, P. ,Newcoomb, M. , (1989).
Parents who smoke and wish they didn’t shouldconcentrate on their own efforts to stop and hope that their offspring get themessage. Another good view of smoking among young people can be obtained from the federalgovernment’s Annual National Survey of drug use among seniors, and now otherhigh school students. Reports of cigarette use in the past years have declinedsince the peak of almost 40% in 1975. The 30% mark was crossed in 1981, with avery gradual further decline to 25. 7% in 1991 and increased to 27. 8% in 1992,Johnston, O’Malley, (1993).
According to cognitive social learning theory, boysand girls learn appropriate behavior through reinforcement and modeling. Todate, numerous studies have examined parental influence on teenage smoking andhas yielded equivocal results Due to the implications of cigarette smokingbehavior for the public health and the view that smoking is the prototypicaldependence process. Research taken from the TAPS (Teen-age Attitudes andpractices Survey) 1992, reported that if parents smoke, their children are morelikely to smoke. In regions of the United States that was surveyed, it wasdocumented that 9135 of 11609 (79%), of the respondents to the survey ofteenage smokers lived in households where one or both parents/guardians smokedtobacco.
This information was taken from household samples of adolescents ages12-18 done by a computer Assisted Telephone interviewing system (CAT). Thegoal of this research is to focus upon the systematic compilation of datacollected in this survey/correlation study and serve as a basis for designingfeasible and effective treatment strategies as well as enhance ourunderstanding of dependence associated with cigarette smoking and substanceabuse. Method DesignQuestions will be of nominal and rating format (attached), Non respondents willnot be included in the study. The questions (10), will be on a 8 1/2x 11 sheetof paper. The questions will be divided into three categories, (health historyof parents present smoking habits, and general. The Dependent variable used inthis study is adolescent smoking behavior.
SubjectsA total of 500 teens male and female 14-18 years old, randomly selected fromvarious areas around the Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base, and Fayetteville area. $2 will be given in exchange for participation. MaterialsQuestionnaires will be given to individuals upon their approval to participatein the study, a number two pencil will be used to write with. ProcedureParticipants will be chosen at random from either the Post Exchange and themovie theaters of the Fort Bragg area. Participation will be voluntary after anexplanation of the study.
Since this research involve minors, eachparticipants will sign a release form. Each respondent will be allotted 15minutes to complete the questionnaire, and not to discuss the contents withother participants. However participants, will be told that they can discussthis issue with parents/guardians. A phone number of the researcher will begiven to each respondent in case of any afterthoughts. Non respondents will notbe included in the study. The questions (10), will be on a 8 1/2x 11 sheet ofpaper and consist of both, true/false, and nominal data, yes/no.
The questionswill be divided into three categories, (health history of parents presentsmoking habits, and general. chi-square and t-distribution statistics will beused to identify significant differences between sub samples. ReferencesBauman, K. E. , Foshee, V. A.
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Cigarette Smoking as a dependenceProcess. National Institute on Drug Abuse. 23Science
