Self-help procedures have the opportunity to assist a large majority of smokers who want to stop smoking but prefer self- help to clinic-based programs. Recently, Health Innovations, Inc. of Reston Virginia has developd a credit card size computer to assist smokers in quitting smoking. The LifeSign Program has now been tested in a Phase I developmental study and initial smoker satisfaction and outcome data were promising: The system is now ready for a large scale efficacy trial and an experimental comparison with presently available, alternative self-help programs. The major objective of the present study is to test the efficacy of the LifeSign Smoking Cessation Program in a large scale clinical trial. Other purposes of this study are: a) to evaluate compliance with the computer-based smoking cessation program as a simple self-help program; b) evaluate the impact of supplemental therapist assistance; and c) determine whether the LifeSign Program compares favorably with other self-help approaches. The LifeSign will be tested using a randomly selected group of 500 smokers. A four group experimental design varying type of treatment and therapist assistance will compare the LifeSign Program with the widely distributed ALA self-help program.
