title: Validity and reliability of self-reported exposure to environmental tobacco smoke in work offices.
abstract: Environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) is an occupational carcinogen. Large companies often examine ETS exposure by employee surveys. However, reliable and valid self-report measures have been lacking. This study compared validity and reliability of various self-report measures. One hundred and seven nonsmokers from 11 Dutch worksites were interviewed. Three self-report measures were correlated with nicotine concentrations collected with area monitors in nonsmokers' offices. Nicotine concentrations averaged 12.7 micrograms/m. The item "How much tobacco smoke, on average, is there during a day in your work office?" correlated highest with nicotine concentrations (r = 0.65; P < 0.001) and produced the lowest standard error of measurement. It was concluded that this simple self-report item may be a valid measure to assess the reach and effectiveness of worksite smoking policies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health Education, Maastricht University, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Willemsen
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Brug
authors.forename: D R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Uges
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Vos de Wael
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003625:Data Collection; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000592:standards*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands; D009538:Nicotine / Q000032:analysis*; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D017132:Workplace
chemical_list: D014028:Tobacco Smoke Pollution; D009538:Nicotine