Functional beliefs about smoking and quitting activity among adult smokers in four countries: findings from the International Tobacco Control Four-Country Survey.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To examine the psychometric properties, distributions, and predictive utility for quitting behavior of six functional beliefs about smoking among adult smokers. DESIGN: Data was from the first three waves of the International Tobacco Control Four-Country Survey (ITC-4), a random-digit dialed telephone survey of a cohort of over 8,000 adult current smokers from the United Kingdom, United States, Canada, and Australia followed up annually. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Quitting attempts and the success of such attempts at the next wave. RESULTS: The six functional belief measures are modestly correlated with each other and are moderately stable over time. Smoking for enjoyment and life enh..