Predicting regular cigarette use among continuation high school students

Objective: To provide a 1-year prospective examination of social, behavioral, intrapersonal and demographic factors that predict transition from experimental to regular cigarette use among continuation high school students. Methods: A cohort of 252 students completed baseline and 1-year followup questionnaires on health behaviors. Results: Relatively low smoking prevalence estimates, intention to smoke in the next year, violence perpetration, perceived stress, sensation seeking, and male gender predicted the transition to regular use 1 year later. Conclusion: Intrapersonal variables may be relatively important in predicting the progression from experimental to regular smoking.