Effects Of Parent Smoking Habits On Thier Childs Smoking Habits

.. hey smoked, and on average how many cigarettes per day did they smoke. In addition to these questions they were asked whether or not their parents smoked, and if they had ever tried to quit. There were also two open-ended questions at the end of the survey that asked about whether or not they have ever known anyone who has contracted any type of disease as the result of smoking.

Analysis of Data There were twenty-four participants in this survey. At the completion of the twenty-four surveys the findings were as follows.Of the twenty-four people questioned sixteen smoked. Of the sixteen, nine people reported having at least one parent that smoked. The average daily intake of cigarettes ranged from six to a pack and a half of cigarettes per day.

The people who reported smoking the lowest amounts per day were also the people that reported having parents who were non-smokers. The eight individuals who reported to be non-smokers, all have parents who are non-smokers. Gender did not seem to play any role on smoking behavior. Of the sixteen smokers it was evenly distributed eight males and eight females.The non-smokers were also close in range five being male and three being female.

Those who smoke stated their first cigarette experience between the ages of eight and twenty. All sixteen people state that a friend had given them their first cigarette. One person reported that his friend would steal cigarettes from his grandmother, and that they would sneak outside and smoke them behind his shed. The sixteen people who reported to be smokers all recalled at least one time when they tried to quit smoking.No reasons were given as to why they wanted to quit.

The methods were as follows: All sixteen tried cold turkey, two tried the nicotine patch, and one tried the nicotine gum. Of the nine people who stated that their parents smoked, their parents tried the cold turkey method way of quitting. All nine of these people stated that they did smoke in front of their parents. The other seven people, who smoked, said that they did not smoke in front of their parents.Also included in the survey were two open-ended questions regarding whether or not the participant had ever known someone who has contracted any sort of disease as the result of smoking. Of the twenty-four surveys only one participant answered these questions.

The respondent was a female, of the age of twenty-five, and also reported smoking. She stated that one of her cousins had passed away from lung cancer as the result of smoking two packs of cigarettes a day. She stated that this information does impact her smoking habits, she says that she plans to quit before having children. What was surprising in this survey was that there was only one participant who felt the need to answer the last two open-ended questions. Was it that they other participants felt that this information was too personal? Was it that making them think of someone that they have lost as a result of smoking hits too close to home? This should be looked into for further research.

Studying the statistics of whether or not losing a family member or friend will impact smoking behaviors.As for the interpretation of this data, I am not qualified to draw any conclusions or correlations as to what these numbers mean. One correlation I would like to make involves the eight non-smokers involved in this survey. All eight reported having non-smoking parents. This information leads to what previous studies have indicated, that parental smoking habits do, in fact, have some sort of bearing on childrens smoking habits.

Further Research Reviewing the information that was collected during this survey, it seems as if parental smoking habits do for all intensive purposes have an impact on child smoking habits.But it may not be the parental smoking habits alone that cause smoking. Further research should be done to take into account peer smoking habits, family smoking habits, and restrictions on smoking at home or in school. After conducting my research I found shortcomings in my survey that were not discussed during the peer revue.

Questions that should have been included in this survey were, Why did you start smoking? , Do you have siblings that smoke? , Are you allowed to smoke in your home? , and Do a majority of your friends smoke? Another question that was missing from this survey was, Do you want to quit smoking? It seemed particularly relevant that all sixteen smokers questioned during this study have tried to quit. All may have been unsuccessful, but more research should be done on why people want to quit and why they do not follow through with this healthy alternative to smoking. It is clear that much more research is needed in this area.Much more research should be done to find a correlation between losing a family member or friend to a smoking-linked disease and either quitting smoking or not starting at all. This research report is only one in a long list of research to find out why adolescents begin the habit of smoking. The question still remains with a long list of possibilities, but no real concrete answer as to why.

Appendix A- Research Survey Thank you for taking the time and participating in this survey. My name is Janine Cecconi and this is an assignment for a Research Methods class. All information given in this survey will remain confidential.Please feel free to skip any question that makes you feel uncomfortable.

Thank you again for participating. 1. Are you male or female? 2. How old are you? 3.Do you smoke? 4. If yes, how many cigarettes per day do you smoke? 5.

How old were you when you had your first cigarette? 6. Who was it that gave you your first cigarette? 7. Do your parents smoke? 8. How did your parents react when they found out that you smoked? 9.Have you ever tried to quit? 10. If yes, what methods did you use? 11.

Have your parents ever tried to quit? 12. If yes, what methods did they use? 13. Do you smoke in front of your parents? 14.Do you know anyone who has contracted any sort of disease as the result of smoking?(if yes, explain) 15.

If so, has that information had any result on your decision to smoke or not to smoke? Bibliography Smith, Karen H., and Mary Ann Stutts. Factors that Influence Adolescents to Smoke. Journal of Consumer Affairs. Winter, 1999.

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Correlates of Parental Characteristics and Smoking Behavior Among Their Children. March, 2000. v71.i6. pA-36. The Brown University Child and Adolescent Behavior Letter.

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