Determinants of electronic cigarette use among Korean adolescents and university students

Abstract

Introduction: A wide range of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) are on market. Only a few studies to date have concurrently examined factors associated with e-cigarette use among Korean adolescents and university students.

Objectives: To evaluate conventional, e-cigarettes, and dual prevalence and factors associated with their use among Korean adolescents and university students.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was performed from a paper-and-pencil survey of 13-18-year-old Korean adolescents (N=2,744) and 19-29-year-old university students (N=2,167) in 2015. Data were collected in April, 2015 from middle and high schools located in Seoul, Kyunggi, In-cheon, and Cheongju, Korea, and from14 different university campuses located in Seoul, Kyung-gi, Kyung-buk, Kyung-nam, Busan, Chung-buk, Dae-jeon, Chun-ju, Kwang-ju, and Jeju island. Socio-demographic variables included age, sex, educational level, and region of residence. Nicotine dependence and frequency of smoking were additionally assessed. Descriptive statistics and logistic regression analysis were used.

Results: Approximately 12.6% and 21.18% of adolescents and university students, respectively, have ever experienced e-cigarettes. Having close friend who smoke was statistically significantly related to higher likelihood of using conventional cigarettes, e-cigarettes, and dual use in both adolescents and university students. Adolescents who have seen their teachers smoke had 51% and 45% higher chance of using conventional cigarettes and dual use in life, respectively.

Conclusion The results of this study provide important information about beneficial effect of smoking cessation support for adolescent and university students. More efforts must be deployed to deal with contributing factors to smoking relapse.