Youth employment, income, and smoking initiation: results from Korean panel data

Relative income concerns and smoking behaviour: The role of unobserved heterogeneity

Status or relative concerns (as in the idiom 'keeping up with the Joneses') can lead to negative feelings such as stress and anxiety. One key question is whether these concerns relate to daily smoking behaviour. The conjecture is that status concerns and the accompanying stress and anxiety might be associated with a higher likelihood of smoking and a higher number of cigarettes smoked, generating a higher instant physical reward and reducing the stress and anxiety. The literature aiming to identify this relationship focuses mostly on a single cross section of individuals, ignoring potential differences in unobserved characteristics of smokers and non-smokers (e.g., genetic factors, personality differences, parental smoking during childhood). This paper investigates the role of unobserved individual characteristics on this relationship, which has not been done in previous studies. Using a long panel data of smoking information in Germany and a variety of panel data model specifications, we show that there is no statistically significant association between relative income concerns and the likelihood of smoking or the number of cigarettes smoked among the overall population. We find a positive and significant relationship only among people who smoked at least one cigarette in the past. A 10% appreciation in the income of comparable other individuals relates to about 3.5 more cigarettes per month among these people. Importantly, failing to allow for the unobserved influences of smoking leads to three times larger estimates than when using models with unobserved factors correlating to the income and smoking behaviour. The results are robust with respect to alternative assumptions and specifications where we use different functional forms of unobserved heterogeneity, definitions of relative concerns, incomes, and reference groups.

South Korean adolescents' delinquency, disclosure, parental knowledge, parent-child closeness, and delinquent peer associations

The present study sought to examine longitudinal associations among delinquency, children's disclosure to parents, parent-child relationship quality, and parental knowledge in a South Korean sample. Longitudinal research shows that in Western samples, delinquency is negatively associated with the latter three variables. We also sought to test whether the associations varied across gender. We found little evidence of significant reciprocal relationships among the variables and no differences in associations across gender. A second analysis revealed that adolescents' involvement with delinquent peers was a good predictor of subsequent delinquency for males and females. Implications of the findings for future research and practice are discussed.

Investigating individual-level correlates of e-cigarette initiation among a large sample of Canadian high school students

INTRODUCTION

Having a better understanding of individual factors associated with e-cigarette initiation can help improve prevention efforts. Therefore, this study aimed to (1) identify baseline characteristics associated with e-cigarette initiation, and (2) determine whether changes in these baseline characteristics were associated with e-cigarette initiation.

METHODS

This study used data from Year 6 (2017/18, baseline) and Year 7 (2018/19, follow-up) of the COMPASS study. The final sample included 12 315 students in Grades 9 to 11 who reported never having tried e-cigarettes at baseline. Students reported demographic information, other substance use, school behaviours, physical activity, sedentary behaviour, sleep, symptoms of anxiety and depression, and emotional regulation and flourishing scores. Hierarchical GEE models, stratified by gender, examined the association between (1) baseline characteristics and e-cigarette initiation at follow-up and (2) changes in baseline characteristics and e-cigarette initiation at follow-up.

RESULTS

In total, 29% of students who had not yet initiated e-cigarette use reported initiating e-cigarette use at follow-up. Students in Grades 10 and 11 were less likely to initiate e-cigarette use. Other substance use, skipping school and meeting the physical activity guidelines at baseline and one-year changes to these behaviours were associated with e-cigarette initiation among both male and female students. Additionally, some differences were noted between females and males.

CONCLUSION

Given that other health behaviours were associated with e-cigarette initiation, prevention approaches should target multiple health-risk behaviours to help prevent youth e-cigarette use. Additionally, school-based approaches may benefit by being implemented at the beginning of high school or in junior high school.

Individual and joint association of adulthood experiences and parental or teacher smoking with adolescent cigarette smoking

INTRODUCTION

One limitation of the minimum legal age (MLA) law, the primary strategy for curbing youth smoking, is the rite-of-passage effect. Adulthood experiences and the behavior of surrounding adults help build ‘adult identity’ among adolescents. We examined the individual association of adulthood experience and joint association with significant adults who smoke with adolescent cigarette smoking.

METHODS

A nationally representative cross-sectional sample of 138542 South Korean adolescents aged 12–18 years (mean: 15 years) from the 2014 and 2015 Korea Youth Risk Behavior Survey was used. Adulthood markers used were tall stature, precocious sexual development, independent living, and job experience. Parents and teachers were considered significant adults. Logistic regression analyses and relative risk due to interaction (RERI) calculations were conducted.

RESULTS

Tall stature (OR=1.19; 95% CI: 1.08–1.31), precocious sexual development (OR=1.51; 95% CI: 1.36–1.69), independent living (OR=1.24; 95% CI: 1.08– 1.43), and job experience (OR=4.38; 95% CI: 4.14–4.64) were associated with cigarette smoking among study participants. Statistically significant additive interactions were found for parental smoking and job experience (RERI=0.41; 95% CI: 0.06–0.76), teacher smoking and precocious development (RERI=0.71; 95% CI: 0.28–1.15), teacher smoking and independent living (RERI=0.68; 95% CI: 0.11–1.24), teacher smoking, and job experience (RERI=2.12; 95% CI: 1.66– 2.58).

CONCLUSIONS

The association between adulthood experience and adolescent cigarette smoking suggests the rite-of-passage effect, which may be strengthened by the MLA law. Raising the MLA to an age much higher than the normative age of adulthood initiation is required. Additionally, targeted intervention for adolescents with both adulthood experience and exposure close to adult smoking are required to curb youth smoking.

Association Between Socioeconomic Status and Early Initiation of Smoking, Alcohol Drinking, and Sexual Behavior Among Korean Adolescents

We analyzed data from the Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (N = 68 043), a nationally representative survey, to examine the association between early initiation of smoking, alcohol drinking, and sexual activity and socioeconomic determinants among adolescents. The prevalence rates of early initiation of smoking (i.e, starting at age 12 years or younger), alcohol drinking, and sexual activity were 4.8%, 10.3%, and 1.4%, respectively. Adolescents with a low level of perceived household income, low level of father's education, and those living without family were more likely to start these risky behaviors early. Early initiation of smoking was significantly affected by affordability.

Household and school-level influences on smoking behavior among Korean adolescents: a multilevel analysis

BACKGROUND

Trends in adolescent smoking rates in South Korea have not shown substantial progress due to a lack of effective anti-smoking interventions and policies in school settings.

METHODS AND FINDINGS

We examined individual- and school-level determinants of adolescent smoking behavior (ever smoking, current smoking, and daily smoking) using the nationally representative fifth Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey conducted in 2009. We found that students in coeducation schools or vocational high schools had greater risks of smoking for each type of smoking behavior than those in single-sex schools or general high schools, respectively even after controlling for individual-level factors. Higher family affluence and higher weekly allowances were associated with greater risks of ever smoking, current smoking and daily smoking even after controlling for parental education and other confounders.

CONCLUSIONS

Whilst caution is required in interpreting results given the cross-sectional nature of the study, our findings suggest that in addition to raising the price of cigarettes, youth anti-smoking interventions in South Korea may benefit from focusing on coeducation schools and vocational high schools.

Disposable income with tobacco smoking among young adolescents: a multilevel analysis

PURPOSE

Prior studies examining the connection between disposable income and adolescent smoking often yielded mixed results, partly due to the lack of consideration for contextual variables. In the present study, we sought to broaden understanding of disposable income on adolescent smoking behaviors via both absolute and relative perspectives in the school context.

METHODS

We obtained data from the 2010 Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) in Taiwan. Information concerning sociodemographics, disposable income, smoking history, and contextual smoking exposure (e.g., school) were assessed via self-report. Recent-onset smokers were defined as those who had their first cigarette within two years of the survey. Complex survey and multilevel analyses were carried out to estimate association.

RESULTS

Adolescents with higher monthly disposable income were 2∼5 times more likely to start smoking and become regular smokers. Having the least disposable income in a class appeared linked with increased risk of tobacco initiation by 40% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 2%-91%). Pupils' odds to start smoking were lowered to .70 when the majority of schoolmates had low disposable income (95% CI: .51-.99).

CONCLUSIONS

Adolescent risk of smoking initiation may be differentially affected by individual- and contextual-level absolute and relative disposable income. Future research is needed to delineate possible mechanisms underlying unfavorable health behaviors associated with disposable incomes in early adolescence.