Title: Smoking Status in Early Pregnancy: What is the role of Self-Efficacy, Depression, and Perceived Stress? Purpose: Overall prevalence of smoking in pregnancy has declined to 11.8% but is reported as high as 40% among women receiving Medicaid benefits. Women who are the least equipped to handle health problems associated with maternal smoking are the least likely to quit smoking. The purpose of this study was to describe the relationship between factors associated with confidence in not smoking and smoking status among low-income pregnant women in early pregnancy. Theoretical Framework: Smoking cessation self-efficacy is an individual’s perception of his/her ability to refrain from smoking in selected situations. Identifying significant factors associated with enhancing a pregnant woman’s perception of her ability to quit smoking is desirable. Subjects: Pregnant women who reported that they smoked prior to pregnancy and were less than 20 weeks gestation were recruited for the study. Participant recruitment took place at two clinics that provide prenatal services to low-income women. One-hundred and twenty-five women agreed to participate in the study. The majority of women were Caucasian, single, and had not completed high school. The mean age of the sample was 23.5 years. Methods: Participants were asked to complete a written survey prior to the 20th week of pregnancy. Women who reported as ex-smokers submitted a urine specimen for cotinine testing. Results: Logistic regression analysis revealed that lower scores for smoking cessation self-efficacy were predictive of being a continuous smoker in early pregnancy. Analysis of variance revealed that depression (CES-D 10) did not explain self-efficacy, but perceived stress did F (2,71)=7.15, p=.001, accounting for 17% of the variance. Conclusions: Women who are having difficulty with managing day-to-day hassles are less likely to feel confident in their ability to attempt smoking cessation during pregnancy.
Session #1189 - Addiction: Alcohol & Tobacco Use
The 29th Annual MNRS Research Conference (April 1-4, 2005)