WEIGHT CONCERNS AMONG AFRICAN AMERICANS AND CAUCASIANS

吸烟在非洲裔美国人和白人女性中的流行率大致相同（28%-31%），而肥胖在非洲裔美国人女性中的流行率（44%）高于白人女性（35%）。 虽然研究表明，戒烟并增加10-15磅比继续吸烟更健康，但许多白人女性吸烟者将吸烟作为控制体重的策略;对体重增加的恐惧阻止了许多女性甚至试图戒烟。 然而，目前尚不清楚其他种族群体的女性吸烟者是否对体重有类似的担忧，或者参加戒烟治疗的吸烟者是否与社区中不试图戒烟的女性吸烟者不同。 本研究的目的是比较非裔美国人和白人女性吸烟者的一般体重问题和吸烟特定的体重问题，这些女性吸烟者参加治疗，而种族可比的女性吸烟者来自社区吸烟者样本，不试图戒烟。 这项研究将研究的整体命题，即非洲裔美国妇女的体重意识低于白人妇女，因此不太可能从事吸烟作为一种控制体重的策略。 据预测，进入治疗环境的白人女性将表现出与社区中的白人女性相当的体重问题水平，但治疗环境中的非洲裔美国女性的体重问题将高于社区中的非洲裔美国人，并且与治疗环境中的白人相似。 据预测，种族将比社会经济地位或身体质量指数更能解释体重问题的差异。 研究结果将表明，非洲裔美国人是否有类似于白人的体重问题，这可能会阻止他们戒烟。 这项研究可能有助于制定文化敏感的干预措施，以帮助社区中的非洲裔美国人戒烟。

Cigarette smoking is about equally prevalent among African-American and Caucasian women (28 percent-31 percent), whereas obesity is more prevalent among African-American women (44 percent) than among Caucasian women (35 percent). Although research has demonstrated that it is healthier to quit smoking and gain 10-15 pounds than it is to continue to smoke, many Caucasian female smokers use smoking as a weight control strategy; the fear of weight gain deters many women from even attempting to quit smoking. It is unknown, however, whether female smokers in other ethnic groups hold similar concerns about weight, or whether smokers who are enrolled in a smoking cessation treatment setting differ from female smokers in the community who are not attempting to quit smoking. The purpose of this study is to compare the general weight concerns and smoking-specific weight concerns among African-American and Caucasian female smokers who enroll in treatment to ethnically-comparable female smokers from a community sample of smokers who are not attempting to quit smoking. This research will examine the overall proposition that African-American women are less weight conscious than Caucasian women and are therefore less likely to engage in smoking as a weight-controlling strategy. It is predicted that Caucasian women who enter the treatment setting will exhibit a level of weight concerns that is comparable to that of Caucasian women in the community, but that the weight concerns of African-American women in a treatment setting will be higher than African-Americans in the community and similar to those of Caucasians in a treatment setting. It is also predicted that ethnicity will account for more of the variance in weight concerns than socio-economic status or Body Mass Index. Results will indicate whether African-Americans have weight concerns that are similar to Caucasians' that may prevent them from quitting smoking. This study may aid in the development of culturally-sensitive interventions to help African-Americans in the community quit smoking.