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. 2003 Feb;93(2):266-70.
doi: 10.2105/ajph.93.2.266.

Smoking and ill health: does lay epidemiology explain the failure of smoking cessation programs among deprived populations?

Debbie A Lawlor  1 , Stephen Frankel, Mary Shaw, Shah Ebrahim, George Davey Smith
Affiliations

Smoking and ill health: does lay epidemiology explain the failure of smoking cessation programs among deprived populations?

Debbie A Lawlor et al. Am J Public Health. 2003 Feb.

Abstract

The resistance of disadvantaged groups to anti-smoking advice is remarkable. In relation to the study of differing cultures, there is a long-standing academic tradition assuming that behavior that may otherwise be difficult to understand is indeed rational within particular cultural contexts. Persistent smoking among the most deprived members of society may represent a rational response to their life chances informed by a lay epidemiology. Health promotion initiatives designed to reduce smoking among members of these groups may continue to fail unless the general health and life chances of such individuals are first improved.

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Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
—Smoking prevalence among UK men 16 years and older, by social class, 1948–1999.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
—Age-standardized all-cause mortality, men from England and Wales aged 20–64 years, by social class: 1931–1991.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment in

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