SMOKING CESSATION PROGRAM TESTING WITH CVD SUBJECTS

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

The purpose of this research is to investigate the relative effectiveness of three different methods of teaching a multi-component smoking cessation program on the quit smoking behavior of a newly diagnosed cardiovascular disease (CVD) population. The literature suggests that multi-component programs which introduce the smokers to a wide range of smoking cessation strategies are more effective than unidimensional treatments. Yet, little is known about the relative effectiveness of different methods of teaching which different markedly in cost. Subjects (N=320) will be identified by severity of CVD risk, gender, and habit strength (pack years) and randomly assigned to one of four interventions (written instructions; individual instructions, group instructions, and no instruction control). Their quit smoking behavior will be monitored over a three-year period and self-reports will be verified with saliva thocyanate levels. In addition to the demographic data, several other measures will be obtained from each subject including health and smoking histories, level of social support, several personality measures, the subject's perceived degree of health risk, their perceptions of the components of the intervention strategy that were most helpful, and morbidity and mortality rates. A potential moderating variable of considerable interest is the client's degree of health risk. The premise is that exposing persons to the fear-arousing communication that they have a CVD will lead to increased attitudinal acceptance of a health recommendation (i.e., to quit smoking) if the individuals are given the means to achieve the recommendations (i.e., smoking cessation program). Six additional questions and hypotheses will be examined. Logistic and multiple linear regression procedures will be employed in order to assess the main effects and interactions of the primary predictors (method-of-instruction and subject's-perception-of-the-most-helpful-set-of-strategies) on quit rates and to examine the relationship between success at quiting smoking and morbidity and mortality.