The Influence of Exposure to Smoking in Movies on Cigarette Cravings among Adolescents: A Contextual Quasi-Experimental Model

Abstract

This study explored the socio-contextual characteristics of adolescents that led them to have increased cigarette cravings when exposed to smoking scenes in films. We analyzed online survey data collected from a representative sample of 955 Korean adolescents. Our dependent variable was change in cigarette cravings after watching a smoking scene; independent variables included sex, age, school type, allowance, smoking experience, and parental smoking. We used paired t-tests to identify the differences in cigarette cravings modified by individual characteristics, and we performed logistic regression to explore the influences on these changes in cravings. The high school students investigated herein had significantly stronger cigarette cravings after they watched smoking scenes than they did prior to watching these scenes (t = -5.039, p < 0.001). The cravings were significantly higher after watching the clips among non-smokers (t = -4.264, p < 0.001) and participants who had at least one parent who smoked (t = -2.114, p < 0.05); non-smoking adolescents were also more likely to crave cigarettes after they watched smoking scenes than were smokers (odds ratio = 6.90, p < 0.001). Korean adolescents who did not smoke and those who had at least one parent who smoked showed the strongest cigarette cravings after being exposed to smoking in films. Consequently, more effective prevention strategies should be developed that recognize this tendency when regulating smoking scenes in movies or implementing related campaigns among adolescents.