Happiness as a Buffer of the Association Between Dependence and Acute Tobacco Abstinence Effects in African American Smokers
- PMID: 29059368
- PMCID: PMC6121915
- DOI: 10.1093/ntr/ntx216
Happiness as a Buffer of the Association Between Dependence and Acute Tobacco Abstinence Effects in African American Smokers
Abstract
Introduction: African American (AA) smokers are at disproportionate risk of tobacco dependence, utilizing smoking to regulate stress, and poor cessation outcomes. Positive emotional traits may function as coping factors that buffer the extent to which dependence increases vulnerability to adverse responses to acute tobacco abstinence (ie, tobacco withdrawal). This laboratory study examined subjective happiness (SH; dispositional orientation towards frequent and intense positive affect [PA] and life satisfaction) as a moderator of the relation between tobacco dependence and subjective and behavioral abstinence effects among AA smokers.
Methods: AA smokers (N = 420, 39.0% female) completed self-report measures of tobacco dependence and SH followed by two counterbalanced experimental sessions (nonabstinent vs. 16-hour abstinent) involving self-report measures of composite withdrawal, urge to smoke, and mood, and a behavioral smoking task in which participants could: (1) earn money to delay smoking reinstatement, and (2) subsequently purchase cigarettes to smoke.
Results: Tobacco dependence was positively associated with increased abstinence effects in composite withdrawal, urge to smoke, PA, and latency to smoking reinstatement (ps < .04). SH significantly moderated the relation between dependence and abstinence-induced increases in composite withdrawal (β = -.17, p < .001), such that the predictive power of dependence on withdrawal severity grew proportionately weaker as levels of SH increased.
Conclusions: SH may insulate against adverse effects of dependence on withdrawal during acute smoking abstinence, particularly withdrawal symptom clusters that are craving- and mood-based. Consideration of positive emotional traits as stress-coping factors in the dependence-withdrawal link may be warranted in research and practice with AA smokers.
Implications: The current study contributes to a growing body of literature examining the potentially advantageous role of positive emotional traits to smokers. We do so by identifying a relatively understudied psychological construct within tobacco research-subjective happiness-that may suppress the extent to which more severe tobacco dependence increases risk for subjective withdrawal-related distress during acute smoking abstinence in AA smokers. In doing so, the study provides a primer for future targeting of subjective happiness and other positive emotional traits as means to understand and treat acute tobacco abstinence effects among dependent AA smokers.
Figures

Similar articles
-
Gender Differences in Negative Affect During Acute Tobacco Abstinence Differ Between African American and White Adult Cigarette Smokers.Nicotine Tob Res. 2019 Jul 17;21(8):1072-1078. doi: 10.1093/ntr/nty122. Nicotine Tob Res. 2019. PMID: 29917091 Free PMC article.
-
Smoking history, nicotine dependence, and changes in craving and mood during short-term smoking abstinence in alcohol dependent vs. control smokers.Addict Behav. 2011 Mar;36(3):244-7. doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2010.10.008. Epub 2010 Oct 28. Addict Behav. 2011. PMID: 21106299 Free PMC article.
-
Tobacco Withdrawal Amongst African American, Hispanic, and White Smokers.Nicotine Tob Res. 2016 Jun;18(6):1479-87. doi: 10.1093/ntr/ntv231. Epub 2015 Oct 18. Nicotine Tob Res. 2016. PMID: 26482061 Free PMC article.
-
Possible New Symptoms of Tobacco Withdrawal II: Anhedonia-A Systematic Review.Nicotine Tob Res. 2020 Jan 27;22(1):11-17. doi: 10.1093/ntr/nty171. Nicotine Tob Res. 2020. PMID: 30726957 Free PMC article.
-
A review of the efficacy of smoking-cessation pharmacotherapies in nonwhite populations.Clin Ther. 2008 May;30(5):800-12. doi: 10.1016/j.clinthera.2008.05.010. Clin Ther. 2008. PMID: 18555928 Review.
Cited by
-
Gender Differences in Negative Affect During Acute Tobacco Abstinence Differ Between African American and White Adult Cigarette Smokers.Nicotine Tob Res. 2019 Jul 17;21(8):1072-1078. doi: 10.1093/ntr/nty122. Nicotine Tob Res. 2019. PMID: 29917091 Free PMC article.
-
Anhedonia in tobacco withdrawal among African-American smokers.Exp Clin Psychopharmacol. 2021 Oct;29(5):511-523. doi: 10.1037/pha0000474. Epub 2021 Jun 10. Exp Clin Psychopharmacol. 2021. PMID: 34110886 Free PMC article.
-
Examining Links Between Distinct Affective States and Tobacco Lapse During a Cessation Attempt Among African Americans: A Cohort Study.Ann Behav Med. 2024 Jun 18;58(7):506-516. doi: 10.1093/abm/kaae020. Ann Behav Med. 2024. PMID: 38740389 Free PMC article.
-
Efficacy and utilization of an acceptance and commitment therapy-based smartphone application for smoking cessation among Black adults: secondary analysis of the iCanQuit randomized trial.Addiction. 2022 Mar;117(3):760-771. doi: 10.1111/add.15721. Epub 2021 Dec 9. Addiction. 2022. PMID: 34890104 Free PMC article. Clinical Trial.
-
Anxiety sensitivity in relation to cigarette smoking and other substance use in African American smokers.Psychol Addict Behav. 2020 Sep;34(6):669-679. doi: 10.1037/adb0000573. Epub 2020 Mar 12. Psychol Addict Behav. 2020. PMID: 32162964 Free PMC article.
References
-
- Vidrine JI, Reitzel LR, Wetter DW. Smoking and health disparities. Curr Cardiovasc Risk Rep. 2009;3(6):403–408.
-
- Pérez-Stable EJ, Benowitz NL. Do biological differences help explain tobacco-related disparities?Am J Health Promot. 2011;25(5 Suppl):S8–10. - PubMed
-
- Shiffman S. Tobacco “chippers”–individual differences in tobacco dependence. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 1989;97(4):539–547. - PubMed
-
- Hughes JR, Gust SW, Skoog K, Keenan RM, Fenwick JW. Symptoms of tobacco withdrawal: a replication and extension. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1991;48(1):52–59. - PubMed
Publication types
MeSH terms
Grants and funding
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources
Medical