HELPING WOMEN QUIT SMOKING - BASE-LINE OBSERVATIONS FOR A COMMUNITY-HEALTH EDUCATION PROJECT

Introduction: Our objectives were (1) to examine the relationship betw een women's intention of stopping smoking in the next month and a broa d range of mediating variables and (2) to assess the implications of t hese relationships for intervention components of a comprehensive comm unity-wide health education program to help women quit smoking. Method s: In preparation for the community-wide program to help women quit sm oking, baseline data were collected through a random digit dialing tel ephone survey of 6,324 adult women, 18-64 years of age. Results: At ba seline, smoking prevalence, defined as smoking an average of one or mo re cigarettes per day, was 25.8% and showed clear relationships with a ge and income, but most strikingly with education, indicating the need for programs for women of childbearing age with low incomes and fewer years of schooling. Among female smokers, knowledge of the health eff ects of smoking; motivations toward quitting; confidence in controllin g weight, or handling stress, anger or boredom; number of strategies n amed to cope when upset of angry; number of community smoking cessatio n resources named; perceptions of support for quitting; and perception s of norms concerning women smoking varied significantly with level of intention to quit smoking in the next month. Conclusions: These relat ionships provided support for the broad range of health behavior chang e strategies proposed for this community-based program to help women q uit smoking.