Insights into Smoking Behaviors among University Students in Jordan: A Narrative Review

Background and Objective: This review examines smoking behavior among Jordanian university students, focusing on their habits, attitudes, perceptions, knowledge, and the factors that influence them. It also offers public health recommendations that could help reduce the smoking rate within this population. Methods: A search of the published studies was conducted in Google Scholar and PubMed. The publication date, study design, and results on smokers’ attitudes, perceptions, habits, knowledge, and influencing factors were considered. The extraction process was followed by a quality assessment method. Results: The smoking habits among Jordanian university students varied from cigarettes, smoked as many as 40 a day by some students, to waterpipes with sessions that lasted from as little as 30 minutes to as long as 90 minutes. Knowledge or risks related to smoking were also rounded to vary among students, with academic measures and smoking status serving as the predictors. In general, students in the older age groups and also the medical majors were better aware of the associated risks of smoking. Students also differ in their attitudes about tobacco; some students accept the waterpipe as a socially acceptable method of tobacco use. Additional studies will be required to outline the temporal changes in the smoking pattern and assess any measures of intervention that may be instituted. Conclusion and Implications for Translation: Targeted public health interventions, such as gender-sensitive smoking cessation campaigns at university campuses, can decrease the prevalence of smoking among Jordanian students. This initiative will be further reinforced by the smoke-free campus policy, restrictions on tobacco advertising, and the incorporation of smoking control education into academic curricula. Future research should aim to examine how social norms influence smoking behavior.