WHO'S VAPING? UNDERSTANDING THE PSYCHOGRAPHICS OF ADOLESCENT E-CIGARETTE USERS IN AN ERA OF GROWING USE

• Published in: Journal of adolescent health Vol. 66; no. 2S; p. S33
• Main Authors: Jackson, Dawnyéa, Stalgaitis, Carolyn A, Wagner, Dana E, Beckerley, Shiloh, Fernandez, Priscilla
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Elsevier BV 01.02.2020
• Subjects: Addictions; Adolescents; Cigarettes; Electronic cigarettes; Intervention; Nicotine; Polls & surveys; Risk; Secondary school students; Secondary schools; Smoking; Social identity; Social media; Social networks; Social orientation; Social values; Teenagers; Tobacco; Value orientations; Values; Vaping; Young adults; Youth
• ISSN: 1054-139X; 1879-1972

Purpose: Teen e-cigarette use in the U.S. increased significantly from 2017 to 2018, reversing a trend of declining overall tobacco use. For high school students, current e-cigarette use increased from 11.7% in 2017 to 20.8% in 2018, a staggering 78% increase. Given the effects of nicotine addiction on youth, and the potential association between e-cigarette use and cigarette smoking initiation among youth, it is important to understand which adolescents are at higher risk for e-cigarette use. We sought to investigate the psychographies of adolescent e-cigarette users - their social orientation and their personal values - to identify which teens are at greatest risk, which can serve to inform the development of future interventions. Methods: An online survey was conducted with Virginia teens ages 1419 (N= 1,594) recruited via social media. The survey included questions about demographics and current (30-day) e-cigarette use. Participants also completed the Social Prioritization Index (SPI), which measures an individual's social orientation (how much they prioritize their social lives over other aspects of their lives) and has been associated with tobacco use among young adults. Finally, participants reported their level of agreement with a series of personal values statements (e.g. "Following tradition is important to me," "I care about being fashionable" ). Chi-square tests with follow-up z-tests were used to identify groups with a higher prevalence of past 30-day (current) e-cigarette use. Logistic regressions were conducted to examine predictors of current use, controlling for demographics. All reported results are significant at p<.05. Results: One in five (20.6%) participants currently 45ed e-cigarettes. Teens who agreed with certain values and social identities - such as self-identifying as a partier (32%), being social (24.5%), caring about being fashionable (24.6%), and valuing living in the moment (24.8%) - had higher rates of current use. Controlling for demographics, teens who self-described as social (AOR: 1.55), caring about being fashionable (1.59), and focused on living in the moment (1.39) had higher odds of current use. Participants who scored higher on the SPI, indicating a stronger social orientation, also had higher odds of current e-cigarette use ( 1.26). Conclusions: Risk for e-cigarette use is not evenly distributed across the population, and teens with certain identities are at higher risk for using e-cigarettes. Interventions seeking to curb adolescent e-cigarette use should consider the psychographies of teen users, and incorporate relevant values and interests to create tailored messaging to reach those at highest risk.