Socioeconomic differences in smoking cessation: the role of social participation

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate whether psychosocial r esources explain socioeconomic differences in smoking cessation and its mai ntenance, Methods: A subpopulation of 11,837 individuals from the Malmo Die t and Cancer Study interviewed in 1992-93, age range 45-64 years, was inves tigated in this cross-sectional study. A multivariate logistic regression m odel was used to assess relative risks of having stopped smoking, adjusting for age, country of origin, previous/current diseases. and marital status. Results: An odds ratio of 1.9 (1.4-2.5: 95% CI) for men and 2.0 (1.4-2.7; 95% CT) for women of having stopped smoking was found for higher non-manual employees when compared with unskilled manual workers. A decrease in these odds ratios was found when social participation was introduced into the mo del. The other three social network and social support variables were non-s ignificant. Conclusion: High social participation is a predictor of mainten ance of smoking cessation. It seems possible to interpret parts of the soci oeconomic differences in smoking cessation and its maintenance as a consequ ence of differing social network resources and social capital between socio economic groups.