The authors perform an exploratory survey that examines the smoking behavior, perceptions, and quitting intentions of 579 college students, an important segment because of their large numbers, their education, and the fact that many of them begin smoking during college. Unlike findings from prior studies of adults, most college students in the sample did not perceive that light cigarettes are safer than regular cigarettes or that ultralight cigarettes are safer than light cigarettes, but rather they perceived lights to provide sensory benefits (e.g., milder, lighter taste) over regular cigarettes. This was especially true for former and current smokers. The majority of smokers were nondaily smokers, many of whom have no thoughts of quitting. This is a concern because these nondaily smokers may not consider their smoking behavior risky. In addition, nondaily college student smokers who are primarily social smokers constitute a large group of young adults for which there is little research into the health risks from smoking.
American College Health Association (2002), Healthy Campus 2010: Making It Happen.Baltimore: American College Health Association.
2.
AnLawrence C., BergCarla J., KlattColleen M., PerryCheryl L., ThomasJanet L., LuoXianghua (2009), “Symptoms of Cough and Shortness of Breath Among Occasional Young Adult Smokers,”Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 11(2), 126–33.
3.
BiascoFrank, and HartnettJames P. (2002), “College Students’ Attitudes Toward Smoking,”College Student Journal, 36(3), 442–47.
4.
BorlandRon, YongHua-Hie, KingBill, Michael CummingsK., FongGeoffrey T., Elton-MarshallTara (2004), “Use of and Beliefs About Light Cigarettes in Four Countries: Findings from the International Tobacco Control Policy Evaluation Survey,”Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 6(Supplement 3), S311–21.
CecilHeather, EvansRichard J., and StanleyMelinda A. (1996), “Perceived Believability Among Adolescents of Health Warning Labels on Cigarette Packs,”Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 26(6), 502–519.
7.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2009), “Cigarette Smoking Among Adults: United States, 2008,”Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 58(44), 1227–32.
8.
ChoiYoujin, ChoiSegung Marina, and RifonNora (2010), “‘I Smoke but I Am Not a Smoker’: Phantom Smokers and the Discrepancy Between Self-Identity and Behavior,”Journal of American College Health, 59(2), 117–25.
9.
ColderCraig R., Lloyd-RichardsonElizabeth E., FlahertyBrian P., HedekerDonald, SegawaEisuke, and FlayBrian (2006), “The Natural History of College Smoking: Trajectories of Daily Smoking During the Freshman Year,”Addictive Behaviors, 31(12), 2212–22.
10.
MichaelCummings K., and GiovinoGary A. (2004), “Selling the ‘Quit’ Brand to Young Adult Smokers,”Journal of General Internal Medicine, 19(5), 481–82.
11.
DeBernardoRobert L., AldingerCarmen E., DawoodOmar R., HansonRobert E., LeeSung-Jae, and RinaldiSally R. (1999), “An E-Mail Assessment of Undergraduates’ Attitudes Toward Smoking,”Journal of American College Health, 48(2), 61–66.
12.
DelnevoChristine D., Jane LewisM., KaurmanIra, and AbatemarcoDiane J. (2004), “Defining Cigarette Smoking Status in Young Adults: A Comparison of Adolescent vs. Adult Measures,”American Journal of Health Behavior, 28(4), 374–80.
13.
DenscombeMartyn (2001), “Uncertain Identities and Health-Risking Behaviour: The Case for Young People and Smoking in Late Modernity,”British Journal of Sociology, 52(1), 157–78.
14.
DiFranzaJoseph R., and WellmanRobert J. (2005), “A Sensitization-Homeostasis Model of Nicotine Craving, Withdrawal and Tolerance: Integrating the Clinical and Basic Science Literature,”Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 7(1), 9–26.
15.
EmmonsKaren M., WechslerHenry, DowdallGeorge, and AbrahamMelissa (1998), “Predictors of Smoking Among U.S. College Students,”American Journal of Public Health, 88(1), 104–107.
16.
EtterJean-Francois, KozlowskiLynn T., and PernegerThomas V. (2003), “What Smokers Believe About Light and Ultralight Cigarettes,”Preventive Medicine, 36(1), 92–98.
17.
EverettSherry A., and HustenCorinne G. (1999), “Smoking Initiation and Smoking Patterns Among U.S. College Students,”Journal of American College Health, 48(2), 55–60.
18.
FaganPebbles, AugustonErik, BackingerCathy L., O'ConnellMary E., VollingerRobert E., KaufmanAnnette, and GibsonJames T. (2007), “Quit Attempts and Intention to Quit Cigarette Smoking Among Young Adults in the United States,”American Journal of Public Health, 97(8), 1412–20.
19.
FaganPebbles, AugustonErik, BackingerCathy L., O'ConnellMary E., VollingerRobert E., KaufmanAnnette, and RigottiNancy A. (2009), “Light and Intermittent Smoking: The Road Less Traveled,”Nicotine and Tobacco Research, 11(2), 107–110.
20.
FairchildAmy, and ColgroveJames (2004), “Out of the Ashes: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of the ‘Safer’ Cigarette in the United States,”American Journal of Public Health, 94(2), 192–204.
21.
FischhoffBaruch, DownsJulie, and de BruinWändi Bruine (1998), “Adolescent Vulnerability: A Framework for Behavioral Interventions,”Applied & Preventive Psychology, 7(2), 77–94.
22.
FischhoffBaruch, ParkerAndrew, de BruinWändi Bruine, DownsJulie, PalmgrenClaire, DawesRobyn M., and ManskiCharles (2000), “Teen Expectations for Significant Life Events,”Public Opinion Quarterly, 64(2), 189–205.
23.
GilpinElizabeth A., EmerySherry, WhiteMartha M., and PierceJohn P. (2002), “Does Tobacco Industry Marketing of ‘Light’ Cigarettes Give Smokers a Rationale for Postponing Quitting?”Nicotine and Tobacco Research, 4(Supplement 2), S147–55.
24.
GodtfredsenNina S., PrescottEva, and OslerMerete (2005), “Effect of Smoking Reduction on Lung Cancer Risk,”Journal of the American Medical Association, 294(12), 1505–1510.
HeishmanStephen J. (1999), “Behavioral and Cognitive Effects of Smoking: Relationship to Nicotine Addiction,”Nicotine and Tobacco Research, 1(Supplement 2), S143–47.
29.
HukkinenMaria, KaprioJaakko, BromsUlla, KoskenvuoMarkku, and KorhonenTellervo (2009), “Characteristics and Consistency of Light Smoking: Long-Term Follow-Up Among Finnish Adults,”Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 11(7), 797–805.
30.
JohnstonLloyd D., O'MalleyPatrick M., BachmanJerald G., and SchulenbergJohn E. (2009), Monitoring the Future National Survey Results on Drug Use: 1975–2008, Vol. 2 (NIH Publication No. 09-7403). Bethesda, MD: National Institute on Drug Abuse, 247–73.
31.
KenfordSusan L., WetterDavid W., WelschSamuel K., SmithStevens S., FioreMichael C., and BakerTimothy B. (2005), “Progression of College-Age Cigarette Samplers: What Influences Outcome,”Addictive Behaviors, 30(2), 285–94.
32.
KozlowskiLynn T., GoldbergMarvin E., YostBerwood A., WhiteErica L., SweeneyChristine T., and PillitteriJanine L. (1998), “Smokers’ Misperceptions of Light and Ultra-Light Cigarettes May Keep Them Smoking,”American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 15(1), 9–16.
33.
KozlowskiLynn T., GoldbergMarvin E., YostBerwood A., WhiteErica L., SweeneyChristine T., and PillitteriJanine L. (2001), “Beliefs About ‘Light’ and ‘Ultra-Light’ Cigarettes and Efforts to Change Beliefs: An Overview of Early Efforts and Published Research,”Tobacco Control, 10(4), 12–16.
34.
KroppRhonda Y., and Halpern-FelsherBonnie L. (2004), “Adolescents’ Beliefs About the Risks Involved in Smoking ‘Light’ Cigarettes,”Pediatrics, 114(4), e445–51.
35.
LawrenceDeirdre, FaganPebbles, BackingerCathy L., GibsonJames T., and HartmanAnne (2007), “Cigarette Smoking Patterns Among Young Adults Aged 18–24 Years in the United States,”Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 9(6), 687–97.
36.
LeeChung-won, and KahendeJenifer (2007), “Factors Associated with Successful Smoking Cessation in the United States, 2000,”American Journal of Public Health, 97(8), 1503–1509.
37.
LevinsonArnold H., CampoShelly, GascoigneJan, JollyOlivia, ZakharyanArmen, and TranZung Vu (2007), “Smoking, but Not Smokers: Identity Among College Students Who Smoke Cigarettes,”Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 9(8), 845–52.
38.
LewisPaul C. (2009), “Tobacco: What Is It and Why Do People Continue to Use It?”Dermatology Nursing, 21(2), 80–97.
39.
LingPamela M., and GlantzStanton A. (2004), “Tobacco Industry Research on Smoking Cessation: Recapturing Young Adults and Other Recent Quitters,”Journal of General Internal Medicine, 19(5, Part 1), 419–26.
40.
LingPamela M., NeilandsTorsten B., and GlantzStanton A. (2007), “The Effect of Support for Action Against the Tobacco Industry on Smoking Among Young Adults,”American Journal of Public Health, 97(8), 1449–56.
41.
McKennaF.P., WarburtonD.M., and WinwoodM. (1993), “Exploring the Limits of Optimism: The Case of Smokers’ Decision Making,”British Journal of Psychology, 84(Part 3), 388–94.
42.
MeyrickJulian (2001), “Forget the ‘Blood and Gore’: An Alternative Message Strategy to Help Adolescents Avoid Cigarette Smoking,”Health Education, 10(3), 99–108.
43.
MoranSusan, WechslerHenry, and RigottiNancy A. (2004), “Social Smoking Among U.S. College Students,”Pediatrics, 114(4), 1028–1034.
44.
MorrellHolley E.R., CohenLee M., BacchiDonna, and WestJoel (2005), “Predictors of Smoking and Smokeless Tobacco Use in College Students: A Preliminary Study Using Web-Based Survey Methodology,”Journal of American College Health, 54(2), 108–115.
45.
Murphy-HoeferRebecca, AlderStephen, and HigbeeCheryl (2004), “Perceptions About Cigarette Smoking and Risks Among College Students,”Nicotine and Tobacco Research, 6(Supplement 3), 371–74.
NightingaleElena O., and FischhoffBaruch (2002), “Adolescent Risk and Vulnerability: Overview,”Journal of Adolescent Health, 3(15), 3–9.
49.
NunnallyJum C., and BernsteinIra H. (1994), Psychometric Theory.New York: McGraw-Hill.
50.
O'ConnorRichard J., AshareRebecca L., FixBrian V., LarryW. HawkJr., Michael CummingsK., and SchmidtWilliam C. (2007), “College Students’ Expectancies for Light Cigarettes and Potential Reduced Exposure Products,”American Journal of Health Behavior, 31(4), 402–410.
51.
PattersonFreda, LermanCaryn, KaufmannVyga G., NeunerGeoffrey, and Audrain-McGovernJanet (2004), “Cigarette Smoking Practices Among American College Students: Review and Future Directions,”Journal of American College Health, 52(5), 203–210.
52.
PechmannCornelia (1997), “Does Antismoking Advertising Combat Underage Smoking? A Review of Past Practices and Research,” in Social Marketing: Theoretical and Practical Perspectives, GoldbergM., and FishbeinM., eds. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 189–216.
53.
PechmannCornelia, and GoldbergMarvin E. (1998), Evaluation of Ad Strategies for Preventing Youth Tobacco Use.Berkley, CA: California Tobacco Related Disease Research Program.
54.
PechmannCornelia, and RatneshwarS. (1994), “The Effects of Antismoking and Cigarette Advertising on Young Adolescents’ Perceptions of Peers Who Smoke,”Journal of Consumer Research, 21(2), 236–51.
ReitzelLorraine R., CostelloTracy J., MazasCarlos A., VidrineJennifer I., BusinelleMichael S., KendzorDarla E. (2009), “Low-Level Smoking Among Spanish-Speaking Latino Smokers: Relationships with Demographics, Tobacco Dependence Withdrawal, and Cessation,”Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 11(2), 178–84.
57.
RichterPatricia A., PedersonLinda A., and O'HegartyMichelle M. (2006), “Young Adult Smoker Risk Perceptions of Traditional Cigarettes and Nontraditional Tobacco Products,”American Journal of Health Behavior, 30(3), 302–312.
58.
RigottiNancy A., LeeJae Eun, and WechslerHenry (2000), “US College Students’ Use of Tobacco Products: Results of a National Survey,”Journal of the American Medical Association, 284(6), 699–705.
59.
RindfleishAric, and CrockettDavid X. (1999), “Cigarette Smoking and Perceived Risk: A Multidimensional Investigation,”Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 18(Fall), 159–71.
60.
RingoldDebra Jones, and CalfeeJohn E. (1989), “The Informational Content of Cigarette Advertising: 1926–1986,”Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 8, 1–23.
61.
RomerDaniel, and JamiesonPatrick (2001), “Do Adolescents Appreciate the Risks of Smoking? Evidence from a National Survey,”Journal of Adolescent Health, 29(1), 12–21.
62.
RubinsteinMark L., BenowitzNeal L., AuerbackGlenna M., and MoscickiAnna-Barbara (2008), “Rate of Nicotine Metabolism and Withdrawal Symptoms in Adolescent Light Smokers,”Pediatrics, 122, e643–47.
63.
RubinsteinMark L., BenowitzNeal L., AuerbackGlenna M., and MoscickiAnna-Barbara (2009), “Withdrawal in Adolescent Light Smokers Following 24-Hour Abstinence,”Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 11(2), 185–89.
64.
SaulesKaren K., PomerleauCynthia S., SnedecorSandy M., MehringerAnn M., ShadleMinden B., KurthCandace (2004), “Relationship of Onset of Cigarette Smoking During College to Alcohol Use, Dieting Concerns, and Depressed Mood: Results from the Young Women's Health Survey,”Addictive Behaviors, 29(5), 893–99.
65.
SchaneRebecca E., GlantzStanton A., and LingPamela M. (2009a), “Nondaily and Social Smoking,”Archives of Internal Medicine, 169(19), 1742–44.
66.
SchaneRebecca E., GlantzStanton A., and LingPamela M. (2009b), “Social Smoking: Implications for Public Health, Clinical Practice, and Intervention Research,”American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 37(2), 124–31.
67.
SchaneRebecca E., LingPamela M., and GlantzStanton A. (2010), “Health Effects of Light and Intermittent Smoking: A Review,”Circulation, 121(13), 1518–22.
68.
ShiffmanSaul, PillitteriJanine L., BurtonSteven L., RohayJeffrey M., and GitchellJoe G. (2001a), “Effect of Health Messages About ‘Light’ and ‘Ultra Light’ Cigarettes on Beliefs and Quitting Intent,”Tobacco Control, 10(Suppl. 1), i24–i32.
69.
ShiffmanSaul, PillitteriJanine L., BurtonSteven L., RohayJeffrey M., and GitchellJoe G. (2001b), “Smokers’ Beliefs About ‘Light’ and ‘Ultra Light’ Cigarettes,”Tobacco Control, 10(Suppl. 1), i17–i23.
70.
SmithKaren H., and StuttsMary Ann (1999), “Factors That Influence Adolescents to Smoke,”Journal of Consumer Affairs, 33(2), 321–57.
U.S. Department of Education Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics (2009), Digest of Education Statistics: 2009, Table 3, (accessed August 14, 2010), [available at http://nces.ed.gov/pubsearch/pubsinfo.asp?pubid=2010013].
73.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2000), Healthy People 2010: Understanding and Improving Health and Objectives for Improving Health, 2d ed., Vols. 1 and 2, (November), (accessed January 6, 2007), [available at http://www.healthypeople.gov].
Van VolkomMichele (2008), “Attitudes Toward Cigarette Smoking Among College Students,”College Student Journal, 42(2), 294–304.
76.
WatersKimberly, HarrisKari, HallSandra, NazirNiaman, and WaigandtAlex (2006), “Characteristics of Social Smoking Among College Students,”Journal of American College Health, 55(3), 133–39.
77.
WechslerHenry, RigottiNancy A., Gledhill-HoytJeana, Hang Leeand H. (1998), “Increased Levels of Cigarette Use Among College Students,”Journal of the American Medical Association, 280(19), 1673–78.
78.
WetterDavid W., KenfordSusan L., WelschSamuel K., SmithStevens S., FouldaiRachel T., FioreMichael C., and BakerTimothy B. (2004), “Prevalence and Predictors of Transitions in Smoking Behavior Among College Students,”Health Psychology, 23(2), 168–77.
WolburgJoyce M. (2006), “College Student's Responses to Antismoking Messages: Denial, Defiance, and Other Boomerang Effects,”Journal of Consumer Affairs, 40(2), 294–323.
81.
ZankGail M., SmithKaren H., and StuttsMary Ann (2008), “Are Light and Ultra-Light Cigarettes Safer? Perceptions of College Students,”College Student Journal, 42(4), 1134–44.
