Association Between E-Cigarettes, Cognition and Mood in Adolescents.

Area of Science:

• Adolescent psychology
• Neuroscience of addiction
• Public health

Background:

• While adult e-cigarette use has shown neutral or positive cognitive effects, its impact on adolescents is unclear.
• Adolescence is a critical developmental period with unique vulnerabilities to substance use and cognitive changes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between e-cigarette use, mind-wandering, self-efficacy, and mood in adolescents.
• To explore how the frequency of e-cigarette use correlates with academic self-efficacy and cognitive tendencies.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of online survey responses from 432 adolescents aged 11-18 years.
• Comparison of cognitive and mood indicators between adolescent e-cigarette users (n=88) and non-users.
• Network analysis to examine relationships between e-cigarette use frequency, self-efficacy, and mind-wandering.

Main Results:

• Adolescent e-cigarette users reported significantly lower academic self-efficacy, greater mind-wandering, and increased depression, anxiety, and stress.
• Higher frequency of e-cigarette use correlated with positive attitudes towards vaping and lower academic self-efficacy.
• Network analysis indicated negative associations between e-cigarette use frequency, academic self-efficacy, and mind-wandering.

Conclusions:

• E-cigarette use in adolescents may adversely affect academic confidence and cognitive processes like mind-wandering.
• The cross-sectional design limits definitive causal conclusions, but findings emphasize developmental considerations in adolescent vaping research.
• Further research is needed to understand the direct and indirect pathways through which e-cigarette use impacts adolescent cognitive and emotional well-being.