Smokers with financial stress are more likely to want to quit but less likely to try or succeed: findings from the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Four Country Survey.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the association of financial stress with interest in quitting smoking, making a quit attempt and quit success.


METHODS
The analysis used data from 4984 smokers who participated in waves 4 and 5 (2005-07) of the International Tobacco Control (ITC) Four Country Survey, a prospective study of a cohort of smokers in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia.


METHODS
The outcomes were interest in quitting at wave 4, making a quit attempt and quit success at wave 5. The main predictor was financial stress at wave 4: '. . . because of a shortage of money, were you unable to pay any important bills on time, such as electricity, telephone or rent bills?'. Additional socio-demographic and smoking-related covariates were also examined.


RESULTS
Smokers with financial stress were more likely than others to have an interest in quitting at baseline [odds ratio (OR): 1.63; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.22-2.19], but were less likely to have made a quit attempt at follow-up (OR: 0.74; 95% CI: 0.57-0.96). Among those who made a quit attempt, financial stress was associated with a lower probability of abstinence at follow-up (OR: 0.53; 95% CI: 0.33-0.87).


CONCLUSIONS
Cessation treatment efforts should consider assessing routinely the financial stress of their clients and providing additional counseling and resources for smokers who experience financial stress. Social policies that provide a safety net for people who might otherwise face severe financial problems, such as not being able to pay for rent or food, may have a favorable impact on cessation rates.
Department of Health Promotion, Social and Behavioral Health, College of Public Health, University of Nebraska Medical Center, 986075 Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68198-6075, USA.
Mohammad
M
Siahpush
Hua-Hie
HH
Yong
Ron
R
Borland
Jessica L
JL
Reid
David
D
Hammond
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001315:Australia; D002170:Canada; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D012907:Smoking / Q000191:economics / Q000523:psychology*; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000191:economics / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000074606:Smoking Prevention; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000191:economics*; D006113:United Kingdom; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult