Discover how mental health, self-control, and social behavior influence non-smokers' chances of starting to vape.
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Psychological predictors of vaping uptake among non-smokers: A longitudinal investigation of New Zealand adults
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Non-Smokers Turn to Vaping: Psychological Traits Key
Researchers, led by Professor Tamlin Conner of the Department of Psychology and Andre Mason of the Department of Psychological Medicine, analyzed longitudinal data of more than 36,000 New Zealand adults from the New Zealand Attitudes and Values Study (NZAVS).‘Did you know? Non-smoking individuals had a more than 40 percent increased likelihood of initiating vaping when they encountered higher levels of mental distress. #nonsmokers #mentaldistress #lowselfcontrol #vapinguptake #medindia’
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They found people who reported greater mental distress, lower self-control, and more social tendencies (higher “extraversion”) were more likely to take up vaping as non-smoking adults, compared to people with better mental health, higher self-control, and less social tendencies.
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Professor Conner says the results show that “psychological factors matter in shaping health behaviors, including vaping”, which could have implications for interventions.
“Interventions to prevent vaping uptake among non-smoking adults could be more effective if they address mental health, self-control, or social factors,” she says. “For example, one could tailor interventions to appeal to at-risk individuals, providing them with additional support to prevent vaping initiation".
“Similarly, interventions and funding to improve mental health could have flow-on benefits to reducing vaping.” Professor Conner says the reasons people start vaping are complex and vary greatly.
Did You Know?
Young people who use e-cigarettes or vape pens may be more likely to smoke cigarettes in the future.
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Surprisingly, these psychological factors predicted vaping uptake more than many sociodemographic factors.
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Lower self-control and higher extraversion were linked with 21 and 9 percent increases, respectively. “This was unexpected because sociodemographic characteristics are usually very strong drivers of substance use.”
Professor Conner hopes the findings make people aware of how their own psychological traits, and those of the people around them, may make vaping appealing.
Reference:
- Psychological predictors of vaping uptake among non-smokers: A longitudinal investigation of New Zealand adults - (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/dar.13822)
Source-Eurekalert