Smoking prevalence and beliefs among adult Scots: implications for health education

Interviews conducted with two samples totaling 918 adults in two areas of Scotland have yielded five major patterns of findings. (1) It seems that the gap between male and female smokers is decreasing. Comparisons with previous findings indicate that this is due to a decrease in the proportion of male smokers, whereas among female little change has occurred. (2) There are more ex-smokers among males than among females. Although the proportion of ex-smokers among males increased with age, there were no age differences among females in this respect. Furthermore, the proportion of ex-smokers was lower than comparable estimates for the UK as a whole. It is suggested that these findings point to a need for detailed research in Scotland into the "natural history" of smoking. (3) There were proportionally more smokers in the Glasgow/Edinburgh areas. However, this was almost entirely due to differences between respondents in socio-economic groups D and E. (4) There were relatively more smokers among respondents in lower socio-economic groups; however, this was due to differences between respondents in the Glasgow/Edinburgh areas. It is suggested that the social class gradient of smoking prevalence may be attenuated in areas outwith the major conurbations. (5) Most of the respondents thought that there is a link between smoking and ill-health. However, some groups differed with respect to the strength with which this belief is held. For example, respondent in the higher socio-economic groups tended to express this belief more strongly. This suggests that strategies in trying to reach lower socio-economic groups should be reconsidered.