Smoking behaviour under conditions of relaxation: a comparison between types of smokers

Smoking behaviour, self-reported mood and cardiac activity were examined in 12 "sedative" and 12 "stimulant" smokers, defined using Mangan and Golding's questionnaire. This concerns the interaction between urge to smoke and external situation. "Sedative" smokers appear to experience their greatest need to smoke in situations characterized by low arousal; "stimulant" smokers in situations of high arousal. Members of each group were examined in two low arousal conditions. In one condition smoking was allowed, and in the other it was not. When allowed to smoke, it was shown that the two groups differed in their smoking behaviour: 10 stimulant but only 2 sedative smokers chose to do so. However, although smoking caused a significant increase in cardiac activity in smokers, no effects on subjective arousal were found. The implications of these findings are discussed.