Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023 Dec 26:tc-2023-058288.
doi: 10.1136/tc-2023-058288. Online ahead of print.

"I think we can do without [tobacco]": support for policies to end the tobacco epidemic among California adolescents

Benjamin W Chaffee  1 , Candice D Donaldson  2 , Elizabeth T Couch  3 , Elizabeth Andersen-Rodgers  2 , Claudia Guerra  3 , Nancy F Cheng  3 , Niloufar Ameli  3 , David Stupplebeen  2 , Omara Farooq  2 , Monica Wilkinson  2 , Stuart Gansky  3 , Xueying Zhang  2 , Kristin Hoeft  3
Affiliations

"I think we can do without [tobacco]": support for policies to end the tobacco epidemic among California adolescents

Benjamin W Chaffee et al. Tob Control. .

Abstract

Introduction: The tobacco endgame, policies aiming to end the commercial tobacco epidemic, requires sustained public support, including among youth. We assessed endgame support among California (USA) adolescents, including their reasons and associated participant and policy-specific factors.

Methods: Teens, Nicotine and Tobacco Project online surveys (n=4827) and focus groups were conducted in 2021 and 2022 among California residents aged 12-17 years. Cross-sectional survey participants were asked their agreement level with eight policy statements related to tobacco and/or cannabis sales restrictions, use in public places and use in multiunit housing. Ordered logistic regression modelled level of agreement according to respondent characteristics, behaviours and statement content. Qualitative data were collected through focus groups (n=51 participants), which were analysed to provide insight into support for different policies.

Results: Most survey participants agreed or strongly agreed with tobacco product sales restrictions (72%-75%, depending on the policy), bans on use in public spaces (76%-82%) and smoke-free (79%) and vape-free (74%) apartment buildings. Support was stronger among younger, female, Asian and tobacco non-using participants and for policies directed at 'tobacco' (vs 'vapes' or cannabis), at flavoured tobacco (compared with all tobacco), and when statements featured 'should end' (vs 'not allowed'). Focus group participants who were supportive viewed policies as protecting children from harmful products, while those less supportive cited concerns about limiting adults' freedoms and unintended consequences.

Conclusions: Most participants supported strong tobacco control policies. Public communication that promotes broader endgame benefits besides protecting youth and accelerates industry denormalisation may counter youth concerns and further bolster their support.

Keywords: end game; non-cigarette tobacco products; public opinion.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: None declared.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. McDaniel PA, Smith EA, Malone RE. The tobacco endgame: a qualitative review and synthesis. Tob Control 2016;25(5):594–604. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Malone R, McDaniel P, Smith E. It is time to plan the tobacco endgame. BMJ 2014;348:g1453. - PubMed
    1. Thomson G, Edwards R, Wilson N, et al. What are the elements of the tobacco endgame? Tob Control 2012;21(2):293–295. - PubMed
    1. Puljević C, Morphett K, Hefler M, et al. Closing the gaps in tobacco endgame evidence: a scoping review. Tob Control 2022;31(2):365–375. - PubMed
    1. Marshall HM, Gartner CE, Fong KM. The tobacco endgame for the Asia Pacific. Respirology 2023. - PMC - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources