SMOKING-BEHAVIOR AND PERSONALITY - A POPULATION-BASED STUDY IN JAPAN

Aims. The aim of our study was to determine whether the previously rep orted findings also apply to a general population in Japan and whether , among current smokers, such personality characteristics can be corre lated with the age they started to smoke and their present daily consu mption of cigarettes. Design. Cross-sectional survey. Setting. Miyagi prefecture, in northern Japan. Participants. 20 538 residents in Miyag i, aged 40-64 years. Measurement. A self-administered questionnaire in volving smoking status (current, ex-and non-smokers) and patterns and the Japanese version of the short-form Eysenck Personality Questionnai re-Revised (EPQ-R). Findings. (1) Current and ex-smokers were higher o n Extraversion and Psychoticism than non-smokers for both genders. (2) Heavy smokers were higher on Psychoticism than light smokers and thos e who started to smoke prior to the legally permitted age were higher on Psychoticism than those who did not. Conclusions. (I) Our study con firmed that the findings which had been previously reported in selecte d samples in western countries also apply to a general population in J apan; (2) current smokers were found to be heterogeneous in terms of P sychoticism when the age they started to smoke and their present daily consumption of cigarettes were taken into account.