Assessing gender differences in college cigarette smoking intenders and nonintenders

Variations in cigarette smoking patterns between men and women have led to the speculation that there may be systematic gender differences which account for these patterns. The purpose of the current study was to determine whether such gender differences exist in beliefs about the consequences of smoking, evaluations of those consequences, one's normative beliefs and one's motivations to comply among 221 college-age students. These subcomponents of Fishbein's model of behavioral intentions were tested with multivariate analysis procedures. Significant gender differences found in beliefs about the consequences of smoking, normative beliefs concerning smoking, and motivations to comply indicate that educational and treatment programs should address members of the two sexes in different ways.