Evaluating social-cognitive mechanisms that regulate self-efficacy in response to provocative smoking cues: an experimental investigation.
Smokers' self-efficacy appraisals strongly predict smoking outcomes. However, the cognitive structures that regulate smokers' self-efficacy appraisals have not yet been identified. Knowledge of such structures could assist in designing treatments that target self-efficacy appraisals to improve smoking outcomes. This study evaluated whether 2 abstinence-related self-schemas, the abstainer ideal- and abstainer ought-possible selves, regulated self-efficacy to resist smoking when smokers were exposed to provocative smoking cues. Craving responses to the cues were a secondary outcome. Cognitively priming both of these abstainer selves increased self-efficacy and decreased craving compared with when a smoking-related self-schema was cognitively primed under the same provocative cue conditions. Higher levels of self-efficacy were consistently associated with decreased craving. These results have both theoretical and clinical implications for smoking cessation.
Department of PsychologyUniversity of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. shadel@rand.org
William G
WG
Shadel
Daniel
D
Cervone
D000328:Adult; D003071:Cognition; D003463:Cues; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012907:Smoking / Q000523:psychology*; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D012927:Social Control, Informal; D012938:Social Perception; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires