Risky behaviors (substance abuse, obesity, suicide, bullying, and others), many of which are indeed preventable, are common among high school students. The most important task in detecting, preventing, and intervening in risky behaviors in schools falls to the school guidance service and school psychological counselor. The main objective of this…

Background: Few cessation studies have examined their recruitment methods to determine the most effective methods for enrollment and retention. Purpose: Data from a randomized controlled trial of yoga for smoking cessation was used to evaluate recruitment methods (e.g., radio, referral) and their relationship to enrollment, participant…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to calculate gender and socioeconomic status (SES) inequalities in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Greater Glasgow and Clyde and measure the proportion of inequalities explained by smoking. Design/methodology/approach: Medical records until May 2016 were linked to mortality data to measure COPD…

Background: Some electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) users report using these products to quit smoking combustible cigarettes. Purpose: Using the Reasoned Action Approach (RAA), we sought to develop, confirm, and explore a measure of current smokers' intentions, attitudes (instrumental and experiential), social norms (injunctive and descriptive),…

Social media platforms are home to large volumes of ambiguous hashtag-based claims about the health, modified-risk, and cessation benefits of electronic cigarette products (e.g., #Vapingsavedmylife). The objective of this study was to qualitatively explore how young adults interpret these hashtags on the popular platform Instagram. Specifically,…

Purpose: To reduce the smoking rates and alleviate societal problems associated with smoking, health administrators and policy makers have attempted to promote and implement statewide smoking free policy. The present study examined how adults' awareness of and attitude toward the smoke-free air law, their perceived risks of secondhand smoke and…

Genetics, environment, and their interactions impact autism spectrum disorder etiology. Smoking is a suspected autism spectrum disorder risk factor due to biological plausibility and high prevalence. Using two large epidemiological samples, we examined whether autism spectrum disorder was associated with prenatal paternal smoking in a Discovery…

Given the questionnaire design and the nature of the problem, partially ordered data that are neither completely ordered nor completely unordered are frequently encountered in social, behavioral, and medical studies. However, early developments in partially ordered data analysis are very limited and restricted only to cross-sectional data. In this…

Background: E-cigarette use has increased rapidly in the past decade despite studies showing their negative health outcomes. There is limited knowledge on the characteristics of users and possible interventions. Purpose: This study presents the demographic characteristics of e-cigarette users in California, propose tailored interventions, and…

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to identify correlates of tobacco smoking behaviour across various socio-demographic segments of the Australian population. Design/methodology/approach: Data from two nationally representative, probability samples of persons 18 and over, surveyed by the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 2001 and 2017-2018…

Objective: We evaluated how applying post-stratification sampling weights to National College Health Assessment II (NCHA-II) data affects estimates of substance use prevalence and tests of medical and recreational marijuana legalization (MML and RML) effects. Participants/Methods: We constructed weights for Fall 2015 and Spring 2016 surveys (n =…

Background: The origin of inequalities in health outcomes has been explained by health selection and social causation models. Health selection processes operate particularly at school age. We study, if student allocation to teaching groups with aptitude tests (selective vs general class) differentiates adolescents by health behaviors and mental…

Objective: College students' prescription stimulant and opioid misuse (PSM and POM) share psychosocial risks with other substance use. We sought to extend a prior study of these issues. Methods: National College Health Assessment (2015-2016) participants ages 18-24 years (n = 79,336) reporting 12-month PSM (defined as use of a drug not prescribed…

Though the prevalence of smoking continues to decline overall each year, in segments of the population, such as those with low income or low education levels, the prevalence of smoking is almost double that of the general population. The slower rates of decline in these groups are possibly due to the unexpected ways that public health messages are…

Studies document inequitable tobacco retailer density by neighborhood sociodemographics, but these findings may not be robust to different density measures. Policies to reduce density may be less equitable depending on how the presence of store types differs by neighborhood characteristics. We built a 2018 list of probable tobacco retailers in the…