Relationships among smoking abstinence self-efficacy, trait coping style and nicotine dependence of smokers in...

Psychological, physiological and social factors play an important role in the initiation, persistence, dependence and relapse of smoking behaviors, and coping style and smoking abstinence self-efficacy can all affect nicotine dependence.

A cross-sectional sample of 568 quitters from 19 communities in Beijing in 2019 was surveyed. Demographic information and psychological characteristics of smokers were collected by an interview questionnaire, and psychological traits scales including the Smoking Abstinence Self-Efficacy (SASE) and the Trait Coping Style Questionnaire (TCSQ). We compared differences in psychological traits across demographic information and explored the relationship between nicotine dependence and coping styles and self-efficacy in refusing to smoke.

Significant differences were identified in self-efficacy in refusing to smoke and across dimensions among quitters by gender, job type, education level, and monthly income level (all p<0.05). Males had lower self-efficacy in the habitual/addictive context than females; retirees had better overall self-efficacy and self-efficacy in the negative/emotional context than business service workers and professionals; and high-educated, high-income quitters had lower self-efficacy in the negative/emotional context. There are significant differences in positive coping styles among quitters of different ages, levels of education, and types of work (all p<0.05). The results further showed that the underage population, highly educated population, and practitioners other than those in retirement, are less likely to use positive coping styles. Interventional effects analysis showed that a higher sense of self-efficacy in addictive contexts can counteract some of the negative coping styles that induce smoking.

Self-efficacy played an indirect mediating role between negative coping style and nicotine dependence; individuals who used more negative coping styles were more likely to engage in smoking and therefore were more nicotine dependent. Hence, it is necessary to reduce the use of negative coping strategies and improve the self-efficacy of smoking abstinence in the face of addiction.