'They look like my kind of people'--perceptions of smoking images in youth magazines

Do Financial Literacy and Financial Education Influence Smoking Behavior in the United States?

Smoking is still a serious economic, health, and social problem despite various efforts to curb its prevalence. We examined the influence of financial literacy and financial education on the smoking behavior in the United States in terms of the use of rational decision-making abilities to reduce irrational behavior. We hypothesized that financial literacy and financial education, as proxies for rational decision making, would reduce the likelihood of smoking. We used data from the Preference Parameters Study (PPS) of Osaka University conducted in the United States in 2010 and applied probit regression models to test our hypothesis on a sample of 3831 individuals. We found that financially literate people are less likely to be smokers, though we found no clear role of financial education in reducing the likelihood of smoking. Further, respondents' gender, age, unemployment status, and risky health behaviors such as drinking and gambling, have a significantly positive association with smoking, while marital status, university degree, family size, household income, household assets, physical exercise, and level of happiness have a significantly negative association. Our findings suggest that financial literacy, as an instrument encouraging rational decision making, could be a tool to help reduce smoking in the United States.

Alcohol in Courtship Contexts: Focus-Group Interviews with Young Swedish Women and Men

This study consisted of focus-group interviews carried out in different parts of Sweden with young adults from varying social environments. The groups were taken from naturally existing networks of friends, and one of the principal items of discussion centered on the role of alcohol in social interplay between the sexes. The analysis shows both similarities and differences between how women and men talk about the significance of alcohol in making new contacts. Both give alcohol a similar and high rating for facilitating flirtation. In discussion of the pick-up situation, however, clear differences appear. The women's view was that for a woman it is possible to take sexual initiatives while being intoxicated, though within limits. What men describe in the corresponding situation is that for them intoxication is a means of daring to be open and natural with women.

Portrayal of tobacco smoking in popular women's magazines: a content analysis

Background

Whilst many countries have introduced legislation prohibiting tobacco advertising and sponsorship, references to tobacco continue to appear in the media. This study quantified and characterized tobacco smoking content in popular women's magazines.

Methods

The 10 top weekly and 5 monthly women's magazines most popular among 15-34 year olds in Britain published over a 3-month period were included. A content analysis was conducted for both written and visual content.

Results

In 146 magazines, there were 310 instances of tobacco content, the majority of which were positive towards smoking. Instances of celebrities smoking were most common (171, 55%), often in holiday or party settings that could be perceived to be luxurious, glamorous or fun. In all, 55 (18%) tobacco references related to fashion, which generally created an impression of smoking as a norm within the industry; and 34 (11%) text and image references to tobacco in TV and film. There were 50 (16%) reader-initiated mentions of smoking, typically in real-life stories or readers writing in to seek advice about smoking. Anti-smoking references including the hazards of smoking were infrequent (49; 16%).

Conclusions

Although tobacco advertising is prohibited in Britain, women's magazines still appear to be promoting positive messages about tobacco and smoking.

When I drank too much: young people in their 20s tell their stories

Young males and females aged 20 from different social groups who live in different parts of Sweden were interviewed with a focus group methodology. The groups were formed by various friendship networks. As alcohol consumption has increased steeply in this age group during the past few years, our aim was to examine the ways in which young people informally reason about alcohol. This sub-study shows how they communicate their experiences of occasional excessive drinking in the form of stories. The value systems underlying the stories are studied by analysing the accounts offered for excessive drinking. The moral conveyed by the stories is that those who drink too much risk being regarded as morally questionable in our culture. At the same time, the extent to which the listeners accept the accounts shows the conditions under which this kind of behaviour can be met with understanding and seen as an involuntary, reasonable reaction to an outer pressure or other circumstances that the storyteller cannot control.

Alcohol and the meetings between young women and men

For this study, focus group interviews were carried out in different parts of Sweden with young women and men from varying social environments. The groups were taken from naturally existing networks of friends, with one of the principal items of discussion centering on the role of alcohol in the social interplay between the sexes. The analysis shows both similarities and differences in how women and men talk about the significance of alcohol in the contact-making process. Both parties attribute a similarly high importance to alcohol in the facilitation of flirtation. In the discussion of the pick-up situation, however, clear differences emerge. The women maintained that it was possible for a woman to take the sexual initiative and be intoxicated, albeit within certain limits. The men's description of the corresponding situation focussed on intoxication as a means of relaxed and natural contact with women.

Media exposure, interactive health literacy, and adolescents' susceptibility to future smoking

BACKGROUND

Few studies have investigated interactive health literacy (IHL)'s relationship with adolescents' smoking-related behavior. This study investigated IHL's association with adolescents' susceptibility to future smoking.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We conducted a school-based cross-sectional study of Japanese students enrolled in public junior high school, grades 7-9 (n=1937), who completed a self-report questionnaire. Variables were grade, gender, media exposure [television (TV), internet, and magazines], IHL (interest in learning about health, understanding what they hear about health, trying to follow what is taught about health), and susceptibility to future smoking.

RESULTS

Significant findings were: [1] media exposure was positively associated with adolescents' susceptibility to future smoking (TV: p<0.01, internet: p<0.01, magazines: p<0.01); [2] IHL was negatively associated with adolescents' susceptibility to future smoking (interest in learning about health: p<0.001; understanding what they hear about health: p<0.05; trying to follow what is taught about health: p<0.001). IHL's influence on susceptibility to future smoking was found to be marginally stronger than that of media exposure.

CONCLUSION

School health-education programs that promote adolescents' IHL may effectively reduce adolescents' susceptibility to future smoking.

Health Psychology and Public Health: Theoretical Possibilities

Public health has either implicitly or explicitly drawn upon a range of psychological theories. This paper identifies four areas where the application of such theory could be developed, health communication, environmental initiatives, the negotiation of behaviour and participation and empowerment. Recommendations are made regarding content, sources and recipient characteristics that can be used to develop targeted health communication campaigns. Psychology also has a role to play in informing structural approaches to prevention. To facilitate this, a framework which focuses on cues, reinforcer and barriers and an understanding of how behaviour is achieved through negotiation and interaction is outlined. Finally we highlight a role for psychology in approaches that focus on participation and empowerment in relation to health.

Adolescents' Attitudes on Smoking Are Related to Experimentation with Smoking, Daily Smoking and Best Friends' Smoking in Two Karelias in Finland and in Russia

PURPOSE

Becoming a smoker usually starts during adolescence and is a dynamic process involving experimentation before the establishment of daily smoking. It has been suggested that adolescents who smoke differ from those who do not in their attitudes to smoking. The purpose of this study was to find out whether attitudes related to smoking legislation and restrictions, social pressures in smoking and image of smokers are associated with smoking experimentation, daily smoking and best friends' smoking.

METHOD

The data were gathered with a self-administered questionnaire in North Karelia, Eastern Finland and in the Pitkyaranta district, Republic of Karelia, Russia. The respondents were 15-year-old 9th grade pupils in local schools. In Pitkyaranta, the data analyses covered pupils in all eight schools in the area (n = 179). In North Karelia, the data analyses comprised of selected eight schools (n = 601). Data were analysed with exploratory factor analysis.

RESULTS

The models revealed that attitudes related to restrictions and social pressure were significantly associated with experimenting with smoking [OR (95 % CI) 7.923 (5.787-10.847)], daily smoking [OR (95 % CI) 9.575 (6.727-13.628)] and the likelihood of best friends' smoking [OR (95 % CI) 3.154 (2.579-3.858)]. The stronger the young peoples' attitudes and opinions, for example, towards restrictions and with more difficulties in refusing smoking, the higher the likelihood for smoking experimentations, daily smoking as well as the likelihood for their best friends' smoking. The country and factor interactions were not associated with smoking experimentations, daily smoking or best friends' smoking.

CONCLUSION

Regardless of cultural background, adolescents who smoke have more positive attitudes to smoking, and perceive more social support for smoking, than do adolescents who do not smoke. The study stresses the similarity of the results in both Karelia's despite the enormous differences in culture, economy and public policy.

Smoker identity and its potential role in young adults' smoking behavior: A meta-ethnography

OBJECTIVE

Identity is an important influence on behavior. To identify potential targets for smoking cessation interventions in young adults, we synthesized findings from qualitative studies on smoker identity and potential influences on smoking and smoking cessation.

METHODS

A systematic search of 4 electronic databases up to September 19, 2013, was conducted to identify qualitative studies on smoker identity in smokers and ex-smokers aged 16-34. Key concepts were extracted from individual studies and synthesized into higher-order interpretations by following the principles of meta-ethnography.

RESULTS

Seventeen relevant papers were identified. At the highest level of interpretation, we identified 4 types of findings: (a) contributory factors to identity, (b) identity in relation to smoking, (c) contextual and temporal patterning, and (d) behavior in relation to smoking. Contributory factors included the desire to establish aspirational individual and social identities, enact a smoker identity appropriate to the momentary social context, and alter personal nonsmoking rules when consuming alcohol. Smoker identity was multifaceted and incorporated individuals' defensive rationalizations, and both positive and negative feelings attached to it. Smoker identities took time to develop, were subject to change, and were context dependent. Identity was found to play a role in quit attempts.

CONCLUSIONS

Qualitative research into the identity of young adult smokers has established it as a multifaceted phenomenon serving important functions but also involving conflict and defensive rationalizations. It develops over time and contextual factors influence its expression. The nature of a smoker's identity can play an important role in smoking cessation. (PsycINFO Database Record

Does donor assistance for HIV respond to media pressure?

HIV/AIDS is a heavily mediatised disease. In this article, we test whether media attention is affecting donors' disbursement of aid for HIV to African countries. We use information available on the number of articles and press documents on HIV issues and other health concerns published in donor countries to construct a proxy of media coverage. This proxy is then included as an explanatory variable in a regression of aid for HIV to Africa. After controlling for several donor characteristics, we find that greater media coverage increases aid disbursement. This may be good news for the HIV campaign but may result in displacement effects to the extent that other diseases that cause greater mortality and morbidity receive less media coverage than HIV and thus less health aid.

The changing marketing of smokeless tobacco in magazine advertisements

INTRODUCTION

Concerns about secondhand smoke, increasing indoor smoking bans, and health concerns regarding cigarettes are contributing to the development of new smokeless tobacco (ST) products by the tobacco industry and the repositioning of traditional ST products. The objective of this research was to systematically document the changing advertising strategies and themes of the ST industry.

METHODS

Using descriptive content analysis, this study analyzed 17 nationally circulated magazines for ST advertisements (ads) from 1998-1999 and 2005-2006, recording both magazine and advertisement characteristics (e.g., themes, selling proposition, people portrayed, and setting/surroundings.) Ninety-five unique ads were found during the two time periods-occurring with total frequency of 290 ad placements in 816 issues. One hundred ninety-one ads were found in the 2005-2006 sample, while 99 were found in the 1998-1999 magazines.

RESULTS

Significant differences in ST ads were identified between time periods and magazine types. A greater percentage of ads were found in the latter time period, and the average number of ads per issue increased (0.24 in 1998-1999 and 0.49 in 2005-2006, p < .001). More recent magazines and general adult magazines contained a greater proportion of flavored products, "alternative to cigarette" messages, and indoor settings when compared with earlier magazines and men's magazines, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

While continuing to advertise in men's magazines with themes appealing to men and "traditional" ST users, the ST industry appears to be simultaneously changing its message placement and content in order to include readers of general adult magazines who may not currently use ST.

A qualitative study of young people's sources of cigarettes and attempts to circumvent underage sales laws

AIMS

To explore how young people continue to access cigarettes following an increase of the age of sale to 18 years and the implications for future smoking prevention policy and practice.

DESIGN

Qualitative study using 14 focus groups.

SETTING

Schools and community projects in disadvantaged areas of Birmingham, UK.

PARTICIPANTS

Eighty-five smokers and non-smokers aged 12-15 years.

MEASUREMENTS

Focus group topic guides.

FINDINGS

While young people did use social sources to access cigarettes, most obtained cigarettes from small local shops. Smoking and non-smoking participants knew which shops sold to underage children and what strategies to employ, suggesting a widespread acceptance of underage sales in some communities. Some young people bought directly from retailers, reporting that the retailers did not ask for identification. Some young people reported that retailers were complicit, knowingly selling to underage smokers. Young people waited outside shops and asked strangers to buy them cigarettes (proxy sales). Young people expressed cynicism about some shopkeepers' motives, who they believed knew that they were selling to under-18s, but did not care as long as they made a profit.

CONCLUSIONS

The ban in selling cigarettes to those under 18 in the United Kingdom appears to be easily circumvented, and one important route appears to be 'proxy sales' in which young people approach strangers outside retailers and ask them to purchase cigarettes on their behalf.

Associations between smoking and media literacy in college students

Organizations recommend media literacy to reduce tobacco use, and higher media literacy has been associated with lower smoking among high school students. The relationship between smoking media literacy and tobacco use, however, has not been systematically studied among college students. The purpose of this study was to determine the association between smoking and smoking media literacy among college students. We conducted the National College Health Assessment (NCHA) at a large, urban university, adding six items measuring smoking media literacy. A total of 657 students responded to this random sample e-mail survey. We used multiple logistic regression to determine independent associations between smoking media literacy items and current smoking. The media literacy scale was internally consistent (alpha = 0.79). Of the respondents, 21.5% reported smoking cigarettes over the past 30 days. In a fully adjusted multivariate model, participants with medium media literacy had an odds ratio (OR) for current smoking of 0.45 (95% CI = 0.29, 0.70), and those with high media literacy had an OR for current smoking of 0.38 (95% CI = 0.20, 0.70). High smoking media literacy is independently associated with lower odds of smoking. Smoking media literacy may be a valuable construct to address in college populations.

Health risks information reaches secondary school smokers

This cross-sectional study aimed to assess smoking prevention and cessation education delivered as part of the UK National Curriculum and to evaluate the relative effectiveness of health, social influence and other/non-health components. In all, 1789 students aged 11-15 from 12 secondary schools completed online surveys assessing smoking status, factors known to be related to smoking and experience of smoking education. A total of 1421 of 1722 (83%) students remembered some school-based education. Of these, 803 (57%) said that the lessons changed their ideas about smoking. Multinomial logistic regression was used to assess whether lesson recall was associated with smoking status in a model adjusting for age, gender, ethnicity, family and best friend smoking status, socioeconomic status, and school. Quitters were more likely than smokers to report having changed their ideas about smoking as a result of a lesson (OR 5.78, 95% CI 2.44-13.72). The relative effectiveness of 16 lesson themes was assessed. Significantly more students changed their ideas about smoking as a result of 'health' compared with 'social influence' (chi(2) (1) 124.0, P < 0.001) or 'other/non-health' (chi(2) (1) 63.16, P < 0.001) topics. Mouth cancer was the most effective health topic and may provide a suitable model for both smoking and risky drinking prevention.

Impact of smoking images in magazines on the smoking attitudes and intentions of youth: an experimental investigation

OBJECTIVE

To determine the effect of magazine incidental smoking imagery on youths' smoking intentions.

METHODS

A magazine was developed incorporating photographs of smokers (Smoking Magazine). A second version of the magazine (Non-smoking Magazine) included these photographs with the tobacco paraphernalia digitally erased. Equal numbers of smokers and non-smokers aged 14-17 years (n = 357) were randomly assigned to look through one version of the magazine and then asked a series of questions.

RESULTS

Smokers made more unprompted mention of smoking imagery than non-smokers after viewing Smoking Magazine (52% vs 34%; p<0.05). Smokers viewing Smoking Magazine were more likely to report an urge to smoke (54% vs 40%; p<0.05). Female non-smokers who viewed Smoking Magazine were more likely than those who viewed Non-smoking Magazine to state a future intention to smoke (13% vs 0%; p<0.05). Female smokers were more attracted to the male models appearing in Smoking Magazine than Non-smoking Magazine (49% vs 24%; p<0.05) and the opposite was true for female non-smokers (28% vs 52%; p<0.05). Female smokers were also marginally more likely to desire looking like the female models in Smoking Magazine (64% vs 46%; p = 0.06) but no difference was observed in the non-smoking females (46% vs 46%). Male smokers and non-smokers did not differ in their responses by magazine type.

CONCLUSIONS

Incidental positive smoking imagery in magazines can generate the same sorts of consumer effects attributed to advertising in general, including tobacco advertising. Sex specific results of our study may be explained by the choice of smoking images used.

Tobacco images and texts in Norwegian magazines and newspapers

BACKGROUND

Print media may influence smoking behaviour through tobacco advertisements and editorial use of tobacco pictures and texts. In Norway tobacco advertising has been banned for many years. The authors studied the coverage of tobacco promotion and tobacco and health in some general Norwegian magazines and newspapers. The findings were related to the publications' policy as stated by their editors.

METHODS

During three months in 1998-99 all pictures of tobacco and smoking situations were registered, plus the coverage on health aspects of tobacco in all consecutive issues of 7 newspapers and 19 magazines. The editors were asked about their attitudes regarding indirect tobacco advertisement and editorial use of people smoking.

RESULTS

All editors for men's magazines and the majority of newspaper editors had no restrictions on displaying both indirect tobacco advertisements and images of people smoking. In total, 610 texts or pictures on tobacco were found in the 624 issues of magazines and newspapers. Only 26 items were indirect tobacco advertisements. Items promoting smoking were more common than coverage of tobacco and health (71% vs 29%), and occurred most frequently in men's magazines (2.1 per issue) and least frequently in local newspapers (0.3 per issue). The proportion of tobacco and health coverage compared with the total tobacco coverage was significantly lower in men's than in family magazines and local newspapers.

CONCLUSION

Editors should be encouraged to increase the coverage of tobacco and health in print media. This may be an important factor in helping their readers to give up or not to take up smoking.

Pictures worth a thousand words: noncommercial tobacco content in the lesbian, gay, and bisexual press

Smoking prevalence in the lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) community is higher than in the mainstream population. The reason is undetermined; however, normalization of tobacco use in the media has been shown to affect smoking rates. To explore whether this might be a factor in the LGB community, we examined noncommercial imagery and text relating to tobacco and smoking in LGB magazines and newspapers. Tobacco-related images were frequent and overwhelmingly positive or neutral about tobacco use. Images frequently associated smoking with celebrities. Text items unrelated to tobacco were often illustrated with smoking imagery. Text items about tobacco were likely to be critical of tobacco use; however, there were three times as many images as text items. The number of image items was not accounted for by the number of text items: nearly three quarters of all tobacco-related images (73.8%) were unassociated with relevant text. Tobacco imagery is pervasive in LGB publications. The predominant message about tobacco use in the LGB press is positive or neutral; tobacco is often glamorized. Noncommercial print images of smoking may normalize it, as movie product placement does. Media advocacy approaches could counter normalization of smoking in LGB-specific media.

Investigation of mechanisms linking media exposure to smoking in high school students

BACKGROUND

Media exposure has been found to impact adolescent smoking, although the mechanisms of this relationship have not been thoroughly investigated. Drive for thinness and tobacco advertising receptivity, both shown to be associated with smoking, are two potential mediators.

METHODS

967 twelfth grade students completed a self-report survey as part of a longitudinal study of biobehavioral predictors of smoking. Exposure to magazines and television, drive for thinness, tobacco advertisement receptivity, and twelfth grade smoking level were the primary variables of interest. Effects of gender, race, BMI, smoking exposure, and perceived physical appearance were controlled for in the model.

RESULTS

Exposure to fashion, entertainment, and gossip magazines had indirect effects on smoking via drive for thinness and tobacco advertisement receptivity. There was a direct effect of health, fitness, and sports magazine reading on smoking. Television watching had no significant effects on smoking.

CONCLUSIONS

Adolescents who read fashion, entertainment, and gossip magazines may be more likely to smoke, in part, because of a higher drive for thinness and greater receptivity to cigarette advertisements. Conversely, adolescents reading Health and Fitness magazines may be less likely to smoke. Drive for thinness and tobacco advertising receptivity are thus potential targets for adolescent smoking intervention.

Image, context and transition: smoking in mid-to-late adolescence

This paper explores 16-19-year-old Scottish smokers' experiences and attitudes towards smoking and their understandings of the ways in which this transitional period impacts on their smoking behaviour. The study involved 49 qualitative interviews conducted mostly in friendship pairs. Interviewees also completed a brief smoking questionnaire. The paper highlights the salience of social context in smoking initiation and maintenance, and the role of smoking across a range of social spheres. Interviewees described how transitions from school to work, further education or un/employment, impacted on their smoking. Smoking was perceived to be an important 'lubricant' for social relations, and marker of an acceptable identity in familiar and new contexts which acted to reinforce and increase smoking. In contrast, smoking restrictions at home, work and/or educational settings were felt to moderate consumption. This has implications for cessation programmes for older adolescents who have been relatively ignored by tobacco control. The study also suggests that if smoke-free policies were extended to all workplaces, this would have a particular impact on smoking amongst older adolescents by hindering the transition from social to regular smoking.

When I had too much to drink

Focus group interviews were carried out in different parts of Sweden with young men and women aged about 20 from different social groups. The groups were selected from naturally existing networks of friends. Considering that the consumption of alcohol has increased strongly in this age group over recent years, the purpose was to get a notion of how the young people are reasoning in an everyday fashion about alcohol. In this study, it is shown how in the form of narratives they tell about their own experiences of having drunk too much at times. The value system at the background of these narratives is examined with the aid of the accounts given of why drinking became excessive and how the narrators explain and excuse what happened.

The moral emerging from the accounts is that in our culture he/she who drinks too much risks to be questioned in moral terms. At the same time, the acceptance by listeners of the accounts shows which reasons are considered acceptable for excessive drinking and on what grounds such a conduct may meet with understanding and instead be regarded as an involuntary and reasonable response to outer pressure or to other circumstances beyond the narrator's control.

A sport-based intervention for preventing alcohol use and promoting physical activity among adolescents

This study tested the potential of a novel intervention addressing alcohol prevention within the context of a sport program. Study participants were randomly assigned to one of three groups, with one group receiving the sport consultation (Sport), a second the sport consultation plus an alcohol consultation (Sport Plus), and a third a sport consultation, alcohol consultation, and mailed parent print materials (Sport Plus Parent). Researchers recruited 465 eighth graders from three schools in the northeast Florida region to participate in the study. The Youth Alcohol and Health Survey was used to collect data on alcohol and drug consumption, alcohol use risk and protective factors, and exercise habits at baseline and three-month post-intervention. Significant time effects (p's < .05) were found on three of six alcohol measures, both exercise measures, and four risk/protective factors, with all but one risk factor showing improvements over time. Time by assignment by current drinking status (yes/no) interaction effects (p's < .05) were found on alcohol initiation, length of alcohol use, quantity, heavy use, moderate physical activity, and four risk/protective factors, with preintervention drinking adolescents exposed to the Sport intervention showing the greatest improvements on all but two measures. Findings suggest that a brief sport-based screen and consultation tailored to adolescents' health habits, with and without parent materials, may potentially reduce alcohol use while increasing exercise frequency.