title: Left-digit price effects on smoking cessation motivation.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Cigarette price increases have been associated with increases in smoking cessation, but relatively little is known about this relationship at the level of individual smokers. To address this and to inform tax policy, the goal of this study was to apply a behavioural economic approach to the relationship between the price of cigarettes and the probability of attempting smoking cessation.
  
  
  METHODS
  Adult daily smokers (n=1074; ie, 5+ cigarettes/day; 18+ years old; ≥8th grade education) completed in-person descriptive survey assessments. Assessments included estimated probability of making a smoking cessation attempt across a range of cigarette prices, demographics and nicotine dependence.
  
  
  RESULTS
  As price increases, probability of making a smoking cessation attempt exhibited an orderly increase, with the form of the relationship being similar to an inverted demand curve. The largest effect size increases in motivation to make a quit attempt were in the form of 'left-digit effects,' (ie, maximal sensitivity across pack price whole-number changes; eg, US$5.80-6/pack). Significant differences were also observed among the left-digit effects, suggesting the most substantial effects were for price changes that were most market relevant. Severity of nicotine dependence was significantly associated with price sensitivity, but not for all indices.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These data reveal the clear and robust relationship between the price of cigarettes and an individual's motivation to attempt smoking cessation. Furthermore, the current study indicates the importance of left-digit price transitions in this relationship, suggesting policymakers should consider relative price positions in the context of tax changes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA.
authors.forename: James
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: MacKillop
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: Michael T
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Amlung
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: Ashley
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Blackburn
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA Department of Psychology, University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, USA.
authors.forename: James G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina Aiken, Aiken, South Carolina, USA.
authors.forename: Maureen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Carrigan
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Carpenter
authors.affiliation: Department of Economics, University of Illinois-Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Chaloupka
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003132:Commerce; D003625:Data Collection; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009042:Motivation; D012907:Smoking / Q000191:economics* / Q000523:psychology; D016540:Smoking Cessation / Q000191:economics* / Q000523:psychology; D013660:Taxes; D062789:Tobacco Products / Q000191:economics*; D014029:Tobacco Use Disorder / Q000191:economics
keywords: Addiction; Economics; Nicotine; Price; Taxation