The influence of observing carbon monoxide level on cigarette smoking by public prenatal patients.

From theories that suggest behavior is influenced by direct observation of personal and immediate consequences of the behavior, we hypothesized that public prenatal patients would reduce their smoking if they observed the level of carbon monoxide in their own alveolar air. An experimental design was used that involved 170 subjects, multiple measures of smoking, and data collection before the intervention and six weeks later. It was concluded that the intervention had either a small or no influence on cigarette smoking.