Dijana Mayer
Croatian Institute of Public Health, Croatia
Title: The association of tobacco smoking habits of adolescents with media messages about smoking
Biography
Biography: Dijana Mayer
Abstract
The aim was to determine the association of media messages about smoking to smoking habits of adolescents, depending on exposure to smoking in the environment.
The study included 3,551 children in Croatia aged 13 to 15 years. Smoking habits of adolescents grow with age. Significant association of media messages that encourage smoking to sex exists in fourteen adolescents at sporting events and television and fifteen at sporting events. Anti-smoking media messages highest perceived on television (72.3 %) and lowest in newspapers and magazines (50.7 %). Significantly over thirteen-year, teachers who perceive smoking, perceived media messages that encourage smoking through television and olds across newspapers / magazines and on television. Significant differences in the perception of anti-smoking media messages at sporting events were observed in fifteen other students who see smoking. Fourteen adolescent who see teachers smoking significantly lesser extent (46.2 %) perceived anti-smoking messages in relation to their peers who say that teachers do not smoke (62.3 %). The best predictor for start smoking for both sexes smoking closest friends, but it was more pronounced in girls and more pronounced as they were under age. Smoking habits of adolescents are becoming more common with increasing age. The most likely potential predictor of adolescent smoking is the closest friend who smokes. Although there are variations according to age, gender, and smoking in the environment (parents, teachers, friends, students), the media messages are mostly perceived through television - often of pro- than anti-smoking content.