Models of the relationship of stress, depression, and other psychosocial factors to smoking behavior: A comparison of a cohort of students in Grades 6 and 8

Background Six specific hypotheses regarding putative mechanisms by which s tressful life events might lead to initiation of smoking among adolescents were proposed and tested on a Grade 6 cohort of students in Scarborough, On tario, Canada. In addition, the data were used to determine the set of risk factors for initiation of smoking most pertinent to the experience of the cohort. Methods. The same relationships were examined for the 1,543 students when t hey were in Grade 8 and compared to the earlier Grade 6 results. The hypoth eses include the effects of personal resources (coping, self-esteem, social support, and mastery), social conformity, rebelliousness, attitudes, smoki ng environment factors, and gender differences. Results. The hypotheses mere not unequivocally supported, except for the hy potheses about attitudes and smoking environment as well as gender effects. Males and females differ with regard to the variables and interrelationshi ps in both years and in the final models developed. In Grade 6, there are m ore smoking environment items for males than for females. By Grade 8, male smoking is influenced by mastery, social conformity, and rebelliousness, wh ile for females environmental smoking and rebelliousness are important. Conclusion. Male and female students differ in how stress, depression, and smoking are related in the presence of psychosocial factors. (C) 2000 Ameri can Health Foundation and Academic Press.