title: Investigation of mechanisms linking media exposure to smoking in high school students.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
authors.forename: Nicholas J
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Carson
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rodriguez
authors.forename: Janet
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Audrain-McGovern
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D000329:Advertising; D001828:Body Image; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008402:Mass Media; D008960:Models, Psychological; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012907:Smoking / Q000523:psychology*; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D012931:Social Environment; D013851:Thinness; D014768:Virginia