PARENTAL AND PEER INFLUENCES ON SMOKING AMONG YOUNG-ADULTS - 10-YEAR FOLLOW-UP OF THE OSLO YOUTH STUDY PARTICIPANTS

This study was designed to investigate the impact of family and peer r ole models during the early adolescent years on smoking onset and on s ubsequent daily smoking among young adults. Baseline data were collect ed from a sample of 827 students and their parents in 1979. Participat ing students were recruited among 5th, 6th and 7th graders (11-14 year s old) attending six schools in Oslo, Norway. The same students were i nvited to participate in a 2-year follow-up survey in 1981 and in a 10 -year follow-up survey in 1989 when their average age was 23.4 years. Both at baseline and in 1981, smoking (experimental or regular) was st rongly associated with smoking behaviour of friends and siblings. Pare ntal smoking and parents' educational level were not significant predi ctors of their offspring's smoking in 1979. While friends' smoking in 1979 or 1981 remained a significant bivariate predictor of daily smoki ng in 1989, mother's baseline smoking emerged, in multivariate analysi s, as the most important long-term predictor of daily smoking among yo ung adults. These results point to the importance of including parents in smoking prevention efforts targeting adolescents.