title: Social Capital, Perceived Economic Affluence, and Smoking During Adolescence: A Cross-Sectional Study.
abstract: Smoking is among the health risk behaviors taken up by many adolescents with lifelong consequences and associations with multiple health risk behaviors. Smoking and smoking initiation in adolescence involves an interaction between micro-, meso-, and macro systems, including neighborhoods and the greater community.
  
  
  
  To examine the associations of individual social and economic capital with self-reported health, life satisfaction, and smoking behavior in adolescents.
  
  
  
  Using a multistage random sampling of junior high school students (16-18 years old) in Crete, Greece, 703 adolescents (90.2% 16 years old; 55.6% girls, participation rate 84.2%) completed an anonymous questionnaire based on HBSC study and the Youth Social Capital Scale (YSCS) during April-June 2008. Multiple logistic regression models were performed adjusted for potential confounders.
  
  
  
  Adolescents with high participation in their neighborhoods and communities (higher structural social capital) displayed lower odds for daily smoking; those feeling unsafe (lower cognitive social capital) were at greater odds of daily smoking. Adolescents with less friends and acquaintances had lower odds of having tried tobacco products. Smoking was not related to any economic capital variables (perceived affluence, paternal and maternal employment status). Adolescents with low/medium versus high total social capital were at higher odds for low life satisfaction and fair/bad versus excellent self-rated health. Conclusions/Importance: Social capital theory may provide a better understanding in identifying the social context that is protective or harmful to adolescents' smoking. Public health organizations at all levels need to incorporate social capital theory in their interventions.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Social Work , Technological Educational Institute of Crete , Heraklion , Greece.
authors.forename: Kleio
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Koutra
authors.affiliation: b Nursing Department , Technological Educational Institute of Crete , Heraklion , Greece.
authors.forename: George
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kritsotakis
authors.affiliation: c Department of Social Medicine , University of Crete , Heraklion , Greece.
authors.forename: Manolis
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Linardakis
authors.affiliation: a Department of Social Work , Technological Educational Institute of Crete , Heraklion , Greece.
authors.forename: Nikoleta
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ratsika
authors.affiliation: d Department of Psychiatry , Athens University Medical School , Athens , Greece.
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kokkevi
authors.affiliation: c Department of Social Medicine , University of Crete , Heraklion , Greece.
authors.forename: Anastas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Philalithis
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010465:Perception; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D012907:Smoking / Q000523:psychology*; D066270:Social Capital; D012923:Social Class; D012931:Social Environment; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Adolescents; community; health risk behaviors; participation; safety; smoking; social capital; students; tobacco use