Responsiveness of the Smoking Cessation Quality of Life (SCQoL) questionnaire

The Smoking Cessation Quality of Life (SCQoL) questionnaire was developed to quantify changes in self-reported functioning and well-being associated with the smoking cessation process and to facilitate comparisons among smokers, former smokers, and nonsmokers. The SCQoL includes 5 cessation-targeted scales and the 8 multi-item scales of the Medical Outcomes Study 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey.

This study was conducted to assess the responsiveness of the SCQoL by analyzing associations between SCQoL scale scores and duration of smoking abstinence.

The SCQoL was administered at a screening visit and 2 to 6 weeks after screening as part of a longitudinal study. Study participants included smokers who intended to quit smoking. Subjects were required to purchase nicotine inhalers and were prompted to quit smoking before follow-up. Based on self-reported duration of abstinence at follow-up, subjects were categorized as recidivists (0 days smoke free), short-term abstainers (1-7 days smoke free), or longer-term abstainers (>7 days smoke free). Kruskal-Wallis tests were used to compare changes in scale scores from screening to follow-up among the 3 groups.

The internal consistency reliability of the 13 SCQoL scales ranged from 0.67 to 0.92. Subjects who maintained abstinence for longer periods experienced smaller declines in health-related quality of life between the screening and follow-up assessments. Differences among the 3 groups were driven primarily by differences between recidivists and longer-term abstainers.

The results are consistent with research indicating that recidivists report a greater number of (and more severe) cessation-related symptoms than abstainers. The findings of this investigation provide evidence for the responsiveness of the SCQoL.