Developing Measures of Little Cigar Use for Young Adults
Principal Investigator: Kimberle Sterling
Funding Mechanism: National Institutes of Health- Grant
ID number: 1 R03 CA159909-01A1
Award Date: 9/1/2012
Institution: Georgia State University
Little cigar consumption has increased, particularly among African-American and Hispanic young adults living in low-income communities. Currently, national surveys of tobacco use include one "catch all" item that assesses all forms of cigar use (e.g., big cigars, little cigars, and cigarillos); this item does not allow for precise estimates of the frequency, duration, or quantity of use of little cigars and often underreports little cigar use among minorities, who are not typically targeted in tobacco-related measurement development studies. This study will develop and pilot test measures of little cigar use and its psychosocial determinants in a group of racially/ethnically diverse young adults. Study aims are: (1) to conduct 10 focus groups of 6 to 8 racially/ethnically diverse young adults (aged 18-25) to identify salient attitudinal, normative, and behavioral control beliefs related to little cigar smoking; (2) to develop questionnaire items that assess little cigar use and attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control regarding little cigar use; (3) to conduct cognitive testing of the little cigar items; and (4) to pilot test the questionnaire items and measures of intention, duration, frequency, quantity, and type of little cigar use in a small sample of racially/ethnically diverse young adults. Researchers will use the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Cigar Monitoring recommendations, NCI Measures Guide for Tobacco Control Researchers, and existing tobacco use questions from national surveys to develop the little cigar use items.