Abstracts Sociology

What are the roots of the socioeconomic gradient in smoking? The role of social contexts during adolescence

by Dominique Geoffroy

The relationship between SES and adolescent smoking has been documented in the past literature; however the roots of the inverse socio-economic gradient remain unclear. Using longitudinal data that was collected from 10 high schools in the Montreal region between 1999 and 2004, the analyses test 'neighborhood median income' and 'parental education' to explain four smoking outcomes at smoking onset, notably "need to smoke prior to daily smoking", a novel variable which attempts to capture Tobacco Dependence rather than Nicotine Dependence. Some mediating variables were also informative in providing reasons why adolescents start smoking and progress toward a more intense consumption. It was hypothesized that teenagers from low socioeconomic status (SES) had greater likelihood to smoke than others. The results showed that SES matters differently according to gender. Unexpectedly, boys were more likely to present a positive relationship as those from high income neighborhoods initiated smoking in greater proportions than those from less privileged areas; whereas contrastingly for girls, as expected, those from low income districts had higher probabilities to start smoking. Furthermore, the respondents from highly educated families were less likely to report mediating factors or to smoke because of these positive endorsements. In attempt to prevent smoking among adolescents and young adults, educational and public policies are suggested. In addition, in order to better explain the inverse social gradient in smoking, future research evaluating the interactional effect between SES and risk factors is needed. Finally, researchers may also engage into a follow-up discussion over the five-step phases of the decisional process that is proposed in this thesis; it would contribute to a better understanding of the forces that are at play when individuals initiate a behavior at-risk for developing a state of dependence. La relation entre le statut socio-économique et le tabagisme à l'adolescence a déjà été documentée par le passé; par contre, les facteurs expliquant l'origine du gradient inversé demeurent inconnus. Grâce à des données longitudinales qui ont suivi la même cohorte d'étudiants provenant de 10 écoles différentes de la région de Montréal entre 1999 et 2004, des analyses testent l'effet du 'revenu médian du quartier de résidence' et du niveau d'éducation des parents pour expliquer quatre variables dépendantes expliquant différents niveaux d'usage du tabac, notamment une nouveauté, le besoin de fumer avant le début d'une consommation quotidienne dans le but de distinguer la dépendance au tabac à celle de la nicotine. Ces médiateurs sont particulièrement éclairants et indiquent les raisons pour lesquelles les adolescents commencent à fumer et progressent vers une consommation plus intensive. Les hypothèses présument que les jeunes dont le statut socio-économique (SES) est bas sont plus à risque que les autres de fumer. Les résultats démontrent que le SES agit différemment selon le sexe. De façon non-prévue,…