Development and validation of an adolescent smoking consequences questionnaire

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Public Health
• Adolescent Health

Background:

• Outcome expectancies significantly influence smoking behavior initiation and maintenance in adults.
• Previous adolescent studies show similar patterns but often lack validated expectancy measures.
• A validated instrument is needed to accurately assess adolescent smoking expectancies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To modify the adult Smoking Consequences Questionnaire (SCQ) for adolescent use.
• To validate the factor structure of the modified instrument in a diverse adolescent sample.
• To assess the reliability and validity of the Adolescent Smoking Consequences Questionnaire (ASCQ).

Main Methods:

• Modification of the adult SCQ into the ASCQ.
• Confirmatory factor analysis of the ASCQ using data from adolescent smokers and non-smokers (aged 11-19).
• Psychometric validation of the adapted instrument.

Main Results:

• The confirmatory factor analysis supported a seven-latent-factor structure for the ASCQ, mirroring the adult SCQ.
• Adolescent smoking behavior and future smoking intentions correlated with positive and negative smoking outcome expectancies.
• The ASCQ demonstrated early support for validity and reliability in assessing teen smoking expectancies.

Conclusions:

• The Adolescent Smoking Consequences Questionnaire (ASCQ) is a psychometrically sound instrument for assessing adolescent smoking expectancies.
• The ASCQ can aid in understanding the role of expectancies in adolescent smoking behavior.
• This validated tool supports research and interventions targeting teen smoking prevention and cessation.