Cigarette smoking is the leading preventable cause of death and disease in the United States. Although smoking rates are declining among adults in the U.S., 30-day smoking rates are holding steady at 30% among college students and pose a major health concern for this population. College student smokers report more depressive symptomatology than nonsmokers, and depressive symptoms correlate positively with smoking level. Depressed adult smokers evince a lower likelihood of smoking cessation and higher relapse rates than nondepressed smokers. Among adult smokers, there is some evidence to suggest that affect regulation interventions may be beneficial for smokers with elevated depressive symptoms. To date, the effectiveness of mood management interventions to address the smoking-depression relationship among college students remains unknown. This pilot investigation advances two important aims: 1) in a sample of college students with elevated depressive symptoms, we will test whether a group-based behavioral counseling for smoking cessation and mood management combined intervention (CBT) leads to higher abstinence rates than an attention-matched control group (CG), and 2) this study will provide an estimate of the feasibility of implementation of a combined behavioral counseling and mood management intervention on a college campus. Additional exploratory aims will examine changes in depressive symptoms, negative affect, negative affect regulation expectancies, and use of cognitive reappraisal strategies in both study arms from baseline to end of treatment and 3- and 6-month follow-up. We will also explore the relationship between baseline depressive symptoms and treatment adherence. We will recruit 50 college student smokers (i.e., out of the past 30 days, smoking cigarettes from 6 to 30 days) with clinically elevated depressive symptoms, as indicated by the Center for Epidemiological Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D) scores of ? 16. Participants will be randomized to 6 group-based sessions of: 1) the combined experimental intervention (CBT, N=25) or 2) an attention-matched control group (CG, N=25). This study will serve as an initial step towards developing and implementing effective interventions aimed at reducing cigarette smoking among college student smokers experiencing high levels of depressive symptoms and negative affect, addressing NIDA's stated plan to encourage the development of more effective behavioral treatments for drugs of abuse. The ultimate goal of this work is to develop effective interventions that will reduce future tobacco-related morbidity and mortality among depressed young adults.
| Schleicher, Holly E; Harris, Kari Jo; Campbell, Duncan G et al. (2012) Mood management intervention for college smokers with elevated depressive symptoms: a pilot study. J Am Coll Health 60:37-45 |
