Effectiveness of Self-Help Smoking Cessation Programs in the 21st Century: A Systematic Review

Due to the diversity of self-help smoking cessation programs, the effects of those programs on smoking and the factors involved in their efficacy remain unclear, with contradictory results.

The purpose of this review was to systematically analyze literature from 2000 to 2023 to evaluate the effectiveness of various self-help smoking cessation programs including a follow-up at 6 months postintervention and to identify if any specific type of material proved to be more effective than others.

Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses method, 17 studies were included in this review.

Results suggest that programs actively involving users are the most effective ones. While technological self-help smoking cessation programs are prevalent, they do not inherently surpass traditional print-based methods in effectiveness. Technology alone does not necessarily enhance smoking cessation outcomes. The findings also highlight specific limitations associated with assessing the effectiveness of interventions: numerous studies primarily compare various intervention types, often lacking a suitable control condition, and frequently involve numerous confounding variables. Additionally, most interventions lack a clearly defined timeline, impeding a precise assessment of real-time effects. Finally, the results raise questions about the duration of protocols: 6 months may not always be adequate to observe the progression of an individual's nicotine addiction.

This study considers the factors involved in the effectiveness of self-help smoking cessation programs, provides insight into the existing limitations of current research and suggests potential avenues for future studies.