China Stephen Tamplin PhD program at the School of Public Health; Department of Health, Behavior and Society; Social Networks, Normative Influence and Social Change concentration
With more than 350 million smokers and successive age cohorts smoking at earlier ages, tobacco smoke is one of the leading preventable risk factors of mortality in China. Despite high awareness about the associated health hazards, low smoking cessation rates coupled with low behavioral intention to quit fuel China’s precarious health situation. University students and young professionals constitute a large segment of China’s population at risk to cigarette smoking. Immediate efforts are needed to increase smoking prevention intervention programs among China’s young adults. Based on 8-10 focus group discussions and 30 in-depth interviews with young adults (ages 20-25), this qualitative study will explore their tobacco smoking behaviors, ideations and behavioral intentions towards smoking and smoking cessation with a particular focus on normative group influences. Findings from this exploratory research project will yield more knowledge on inhibiting and facilitating factors associated with cigarette smoke that can be used for future policy and diffusion of innovation intervention programs.
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Christine Fu
