ANTISMOKING SOCIALIZATION - RELATIONSHIP TO PARENT AND CHILD SMOKING STATUS

Anti-smoking socialization is defined as the transmission of knowledge , attitudes, and skills that prepare children to resist smoking. Three types of anti-smoking socialization are studied: parents' communicati on with children regarding no-smoking rules at home, health risks asso ciated with smoking, and the disciplinary consequences of smoking. Res ults from a survey of children in 3rd through 8th grades (N = 937) ind icate that (a) children from households where one or both parents smok e perceive less anti-smoking socialization than their peers from nonsm oking households; (b) anti-smoking socialization is positively associa ted with authoritative parenting; (c) children have significantly lowe r rates of smoking intention and initiation when parents engage in ant i-smoking socialization, even if parents currently smoke. The findings offer an encouraging message to all parents: Communicating anti-smoki ng messages may effectively discourage children from smoking.