Predictors of changes in running and smoking identity among individuals in the Run to Quit smoking cessation program

OBJECTIVES

Multiple health behaviour change is a viable strategy to promote health outcomes. An example is the use of running behaviour to support smoking cessation in the group-mediated Run to Quit program. On the basis that changes in running and smoking identity were related to changes in running and smoking behaviour among individuals in the Run to Quit program, the purpose of this study was to extend these findings by examining key predictors of change in both running and smoking identity.

METHODS

We analyzed data collected from 450 adult individuals (70.67% female, and 92.44% white) during the program evaluation of Run to Quit from 2016 to 2018. Participants completed assessments at week 1 (baseline), week 3 (mid-program), and week 10 (follow-up) of the program. Relevant predictor variables for change in identity were identified by drawing from theory (identity theory, identity control theory, physical activity self-definition model, social identity theory) and past research regarding exercise and smoking identity. Potential predictors of changes in running and smoking identity included changes in behaviour, self-efficacy, perceptions of the social environment (task and social cohesion, descriptive norms), as well as smoking identity and running identity, respectively. Two regression models, using residualized change scores (for each variable) and relative Pratt indices, were constructed for both running and smoking identity.

RESULTS

Changes in running self-efficacy, running frequency, and individual attractions to the group exercise tasks were significant and meaningful predictors of change in running identity, whereas changes in objectively measured smoking behaviour and running identity were significant and meaningful predictors of change in smoking identity.

CONCLUSION

Consistent with identity theories and past research, ensuring individuals develop a sense of efficacy and enjoy group exercise tasks both represent viable strategies to enhance exercise identity. Including an exercise component within smoking cessation programs may help individuals replace their existing smoking identity with a healthier exercise identity.

The Role of Parental Engagement in the Intergenerational Transmission of Smoking Behavior and Identity

PURPOSE

Prior research has found that the protective effect of parental engagement on adolescent smoking behaviors may be weaker if parents smoke. We examine parental influence on adolescent smoking using a social learning theory framework. We hypothesize that adolescents are more likely to mimic parental smoking behavior if they perceive parents as being more engaged and if the parent is the same gender of the adolescent.

METHODS

Hypotheses were tested using a diverse sample of 6,998 adolescents who were followed for seven waves (grades 6-12). Adolescent gender, time-stable and time-varying effects of parental engagement, adolescent perceptions of parental smoking, and interactions among the effects of these variables are tested using multilevel mediation models. We use a traditional measure of past 3-month adolescent smoking and a novel measure of smoking identity.

RESULTS

Parental smoking was associated with a developmental increase in adolescent smoking and time-stable and time-varying parental engagement protected against adolescent smoking, whereas maternal engagement and smoking exerted independent and opposite effects with no moderation and time-stable paternal engagement moderated the effects of perceived paternal smoking on adolescent smoking outcomes. Parental smoking was more strongly associated with adolescent smoking outcomes when adolescent gender was congruent with parent gender.

CONCLUSIONS

Even when parents smoke, parental engagement confers protection. Protective effects of engagement may be enhanced among parents who smoke through increased antismoking communication, particularly as adolescents reach the legal smoking age.