A latent class typology of young women smokers.
OBJECTIVE
Despite aggressive anti-smoking campaigns, smoking rates are increasing among young women, suggesting the need for new approaches to reach this population. Segmenting audiences can facilitate targeting interventions to specific populations, based on association of smoking behaviors with other health behaviors and psychological and social antecedents. Using latent class analysis, we sought to profile patterns of behavioral, attitudinal and cognitive variables related to tobacco use among young women.


METHODS
This study is part of an ongoing Midwestern longitudinal self-report survey of the natural history of cigarette smoking.


METHODS
Participants were 18-25-year-old women smokers (n = 443).


METHODS
Variables included a comprehensive range of demographic characteristics, smoking-related variables and general attitudinal variables.


RESULTS
Three distinct classes emerged with the following characteristics: (1) working women who tended to smoke daily but reported high levels of positive affect and life satisfaction (n = 212); (2) light-smoking college students who exercised regularly, began smoking after high school and quit successfully at follow-up 5 years later (n = 86); and (3) heavy smokers who were more likely to have children, report high levels of negative affect and smoke for addictive reasons, for stimulation and to control affect (n = 145). Differences in smoking cessation at a 5-year follow-up were significant across the classes (18.1%, 34.4% and 13.0% had quit for at least 6 months, respectively).


CONCLUSIONS
The psychosocial and behavioral profiles of these classes can potentially be used to tailor smoking interventions more effectively within this population.
Rose
Jennifer S
JS
Brown University School of Medicine and Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, RI 02903, USA. jennifer_rose@brown.edu
Chassin
Laurie
L
Presson
Clark
C
Sherman
Steven J
SJ
Stein
Michael D
MD
Col
Nananda
N
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000329:Advertising / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence*; D000367:Age Factors; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D012737:Sex Factors; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000379:methods / Q000523:psychology*; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D012923:Social Class; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires