Smoking abstinence-related expectancies among American Indians, African Americans, and women: Potential mechanisms of disparities in cigarette use

Authors

P. S. Hendricks, University of Alabama - Birmingham
J. L. Westmaas, American Cancer Society
Van M. Ta Park, San Jose State UniversityFollow
C. B. Thorne, University of Alabama - Birmingham
S. B. Wood, University of California - San Francisco
M. R. Baker, University of California - San Francisco
M. R. Lawler, University of Alabama - Birmingham
M. Webb Hooper, University of Miami
K. L. Delucchi, University of California - San Francisco
S. M. Hall, University of California - San Francisco

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

March 2013

Publication Title

Psychology of Addictive Behaviors

First Page

1

Last Page

13

Disciplines

Medicine and Health Sciences

Abstract

Research has documented tobacco-related health disparities by race and gender. Prior research, however, has not examined expectancies about the smoking cessation process (i.e., abstinence-related expectancies) as potential contributors to tobacco-related disparities in special populations. This cross-sectional study compared abstinence-related expectancies between American Indian (n = 87), African American (n = 151), and White (n = 185) smokers, and between women (n = 231) and men (n = 270) smokers. Abstinence-related expectancies also were examined as mediators of race and gender relationships with motivation to quit and abstinence self efficacy. Results indicated that American Indians and African Americans were less likely than Whites to expect withdrawal effects, and more likely to expect that quitting would be unproblematic. African Americans also were less likely than Whites to expect smoking cessation interventions to be effective. Compared with men, women were more likely to expect withdrawal effects and weight gain. These expectancy differences mediated race and gender relationships with motivation to quit and abstinence self-efficacy. Findings emphasize potential mechanisms underlying tobacco-related health disparities among American Indians, African Americans, and women and suggest a number of specific approaches for targeting tobacco dependence interventions to these populations.

Comments

Copyright © 2013 American Psychological Association. This article may not exactly replicate the final version published in the APA journal. It is not the copy of record. The published verison may be found online at:http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0031938

Recommended Citation

P. S. Hendricks, J. L. Westmaas, Van M. Ta Park, C. B. Thorne, S. B. Wood, M. R. Baker, M. R. Lawler, M. Webb Hooper, K. L. Delucchi, and S. M. Hall. "Smoking abstinence-related expectancies among American Indians, African Americans, and women: Potential mechanisms of disparities in cigarette use" Psychology of Addictive Behaviors (2013): 1-13.