Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death in the U.S., accounting for approximately 30% of all cancer cases and incurring upwards of $300 billion in societal costs each year. Although the prevalence of smoking among youth has declined recently, this success is offset by delayed cigarette initiation among young adults ages 18 to 30. Graphic warning labels conveying the risks of smoking through text and vivid imagery are a recommended part of comprehensive tobacco control interventions. Graphic warning labels have been shown to motivate cessation and increase quit attempts. However, research is needed to understand how and why graphic warnings work in vulnerable groups such as young adults to inform strategies for improving their efficacy. Some research indicates graphic warnings promote cessation by shifting deliberative risk perceptions (e.g., perceived threat), while other studies indicate warnings that impact affective risk perceptions (e.g., worry) are most effective. There is also evidence that some individuals are inherently risk averse while others are risk seeking, developmental factors that are tuned in young adulthood and may influence young smokers' responses to graphic warnings. This F31 fellowship includes training and research activities aiming to advance this topic by analyzing data from a prospective randomized trial of graphic cigarette warning labels in a sample of young adult smokers ages 18-30 from the Washington, DC area. The specific research goals are to: 1) examine the deliberative and affective mechanisms through which graphic warnings motivate young smokers to quit and 2) examine if individual dispositional factors moderate their effect. The training and research activities will help advance the applicant's training goals to develop expertise in cancer prevention research with an emphasis on tobacco prevention and control, develop specialized knowledge in risk perception theory and measurement, and gain new skills in experimental design and statistical analysis. The fellowship will assist the applicant to reach her long-term career goal as a cancer prevention research scientist with support from the Primary Sponsor Darren Mays, PhD, MPH (Georgetown University) and Co-Sponsor Monique Turner, PhD (George Washington University).
The proposed F31 training and research plans seeks to advance understanding of the mechanisms by which graphic warning labels work in young smokers. This will enable researchers and policy makers to develop more effective warning labels and reduce the burden of tobacco in a high priority young adult population.
