Stress-related expectations about smoking cessation and future quit attempts and abstinence - a prospective study in daily smokers who wish to quit

Emotional Reactions and Coping of Mexican Mixed-Status Immigrant Families in Anticipation of the 2016 Presidential Election

The present study illuminates the emotions of mixed-status families as they anticipated the 2016 Presidential election. From a 6-year longitudinal case study of four Mexican immigrant families, we present interviews from May of 2016, prior to the presidential primaries, and from November of 2016, the day before or the day of the presidential election. Using a multiple case study method (Stake, 2006, Multiple case study analysis. Guilford Press, New York; Yin, 2014, Case study research: Design and methods (5th ed.). Sage, Los Angeles, CA), our primary goal was to describe how immigrant Mexican adults and their preadolescent and adolescent children (or grandchildren) personally and collectively reacted emotionally to the events leading up to the 2016 presidential election, and how they managed and coped with their emotions. Our secondary goal was to explain how their emotional reactions changed over time and were influenced by age and immigration status. Initially, participants expressed concern and fear about the anti-immigration rhetoric by the conservative political movement, but largely felt reassured that such rhetoric would not prevail. In the days immediately preceding the election, a notable change seemed apparent among all participants, regardless of immigration status. They expressed having intense emotions ranging from fear and angst to disbelief, anger, and denial, which they attempted to manage through external (e.g., community involvement, activism, solidarity) and internal (e.g., family communication, cognitive strategies) actions. Older adolescents had a better understanding of the implications of the election for their family than younger adolescents did. We provide recommendations for family practice and policy aimed to support and advocate on behalf of immigrant families.

The impact of smoking cessation attempts on stress levels

Background

Cigarette smoking is a major health risk, particularly in male South Koreans. Smoking cessation can benefit health; however, the process of quitting smoking is difficult to some smokers and shows its relationship to their stress level. The hypothesis of this study is that who has failed attempts to stop smoking induce more stress than habitual smoking.

Methods

To test this, the analysis on the association between smoking cessation attempts and stress levels in smokers was performed. The Korean Community Health Survey (2011–2016) data with the total of 488,417 participants’ data were used for this study. Survey data were analyzed using the chi-square test and logistic regression. As the dependent variable, self-reported level of stress was selected.

Results

Of the subject population, 78.3% (63.3% males, 81.4% females) felt stressed. Among participants who successfully stopped smoking, 73.0% (72.6% males, 78.1% females) reported feeling stressed. In contrast, of those who failed to stop smoking, 83.3% (83.6% males, 86.3% females) reported high stress levels. Among those who did not attempt smoking cessation, 81.1% (81.2% males, 80.3% females) responded that they experienced stress. Those who failed to stop smoking had higher odds of stress than those who did not attempt smoking cessation [odds ratio (OR) 1.11, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.09–1.14, p < 0.001]. Those who successfully stopped smoking had lower odds of stress than those who did not attempt smoking cessation (OR 0.87, 95% CI 0.86–0.89, p < 0.001).

Conclusion

The study found an association between unsuccessful smoking cessation and stress level. As the result, people who failed smoking cessation showed higher stress. These data should be considered in health policy recommendations for smokers.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s12889-019-6592-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Identification of Users for a Smoking Cessation Mobile App: Quantitative Study

BACKGROUND

The number of mobile apps that support smoking cessation is growing, indicating the potential of the mobile phone as a means to support cessation. Knowledge about the potential end users for cessation apps results in suggestions to target potential user groups in a dissemination strategy, leading to a possible increase in the satisfaction and adherence of cessation apps.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to characterize potential end users for a specific mobile health (mHealth) smoking cessation app.

METHODS

A quantitative study was conducted among 955 Dutch smokers and ex-smokers. The respondents were primarily recruited from addiction care facilities and hospitals through Web-based media via websites and forums. The respondents were surveyed on their demographics, smoking behavior, and personal innovativeness. The intention to use and the attitude toward a cessation app were determined on a 5-point Likert scale. To study the association between the characteristics and intention to use and attitude, univariate and multivariate ordinal logistic regression analyses were performed.

RESULTS

The multivariate ordinal logistic regression showed that the number of previous quit attempts (odds ratio [OR] 4.1, 95% CI 2.4-7.0, and OR 3.5, 95% CI 2.0-5.9) and the score on the Fagerstrom Test of Nicotine Dependence (OR 0.8, 95% CI 0.8-0.9, and OR 0.8, 95% CI 0.8-0.9) positively correlates with the intention to use a cessation app and the attitude toward cessation apps, respectively. Personal innovativeness also positively correlates with the intention to use (OR 0.3, 95% CI 0.2-0.4) and the attitude towards (OR 0.2, 95% CI 0.1-0.4) a cessation app. No associations between demographics and the intention to use or the attitude toward using a cessation app were observed.

CONCLUSIONS

This study is among the first to show that demographic characteristics such as age and level of education are not associated with the intention to use and the attitude toward using a cessation app when characteristics related specifically to the app, such as nicotine dependency and the number of quit attempts, are present in a multivariate regression model. This study shows that the use of mHealth apps depends on characteristics related to the content of the app rather than general user characteristics.

Smoking Cessation Is Associated With Lower Indirect Costs

Objective:

This study quantified differences in indirect costs due to decreased work productivity between current and former smokers. Former smokers were further categorized by number of years since quitting to assess corresponding differences.

Methods:

Data on employed individuals were obtained from the 2013 US National Health and Wellness Survey (NHWS; N = 75,000). Indirect costs were calculated for current smokers and former smokers from weekly wages based on age and sex.

Results:

The annual total indirect costs for current smokers were $1327.53, $1560.18, and $1839.87 higher than for those who quit 0 to 4 years, 5 to 10 years, and more than or equal to 11 years prior, respectively. There were no significant differences in mean total indirect costs between the former smoker groups.

Conclusions:

Current smokers showed significantly higher total annual indirect costs compared with former smokers, independently of the number of years since quitting smoking.