Secondhand tobacco smoke exposure and susceptibility to smoking, perceived addiction, and psychobehavioral symptoms among college students

OBJECTIVE: To examine the association of secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure with susceptibility to smoking, perceived addiction, and psychobehavioral effects of exposure among never- and ever-smoking college students. PARTICIPANTS: Participants were 665 college students at a large, southeastern university in the United States. METHODS: This study is a secondary analysis of online cross-sectional survey data from randomly selected students in April 2013. RESULTS: Thirty-eight percent of the sample had moderate to high SHS exposure. Among never-smokers, SHS exposure was associated with increased susceptibility to initiating smoking. Among ever-smokers, SHS exposure was not associated with their perceived addiction to tobacco. In the total sample, SHS exposure was associated with greater psychobehavioral symptoms of exposure. CONCLUSIONS: SHS exposure may the increase risk of smoking, especially among never-smoking college students. This study strengthens the need for prevention strategies that limit SHS exposure in college environments.