The electronic cigarette is the novel product to become ever more the focus for smoking prevention strategies among adolescents in high school. In one year alone between 2013 and 2014, the percentage and total number of students smoking e-cigarettes tripled from 4.5 to 13.4 percent of students and 660,000 to 2 million teenagers, respectively (Centers for Disease Control, 2015). E-cigarette use for the first time exceeded over the use of every other tobacco product, including conventional cigarettes. The behavior of smoking electronic cigarettes has the influence and popularity that can undo the progress made in reducing youth cigarette smoking rates (CDC, 2015). Understanding why high school adolescents smoke e-cigarettes thus becomes imperative
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Ambrose et al. (2014) found in their study of patterns of cigarette harm perceptions among U.S. youth that one in three student participants perceived ENDS to be a less harmful alternative to conventional cigarettes. A consistent binary association was discovered, detailing that ever e-cigarette users perceive the devices to be less dangerous and that those who perceived less harm from using e-cigarettes as compared to conventional cigarettes were more likely to use e-cigarettes (Amrock, Zakhar, Zhou, & Weitzman, 2015).If youth consider e-cigarettes as a gateway to tobacco use, signifying a disapproving and harmful attitude, then their intention to try is …show more content…
The majority of 15-17 year old African American and Hispanic American male e-cigarette users perceived that their friends had high social approval for e-cigarette use (Peters et al., 2013). Peers are the more important influences during the adolescent years as Peters et al. (2013) further concluded a negative association between smoking status of a friend and non-smoking intentions. So, in a peer group consisting of individuals who smoke electronic cigarettes, a higher perceived social pressure to also use e-cigarettes exists. If a high school male teenager perceives that his friends think e-cigarette use is a good thing or a healthier alternative to conventional cigarettes and if he wishes to be accepted into the social group, there is a likelihood of e-cigarette smoking
Ambrose et al. (2014) found in their study of patterns of cigarette harm perceptions among U.S. youth that one in three student participants perceived ENDS to be a less harmful alternative to conventional cigarettes. A consistent binary association was discovered, detailing that ever e-cigarette users perceive the devices to be less dangerous and that those who perceived less harm from using e-cigarettes as compared to conventional cigarettes were more likely to use e-cigarettes (Amrock, Zakhar, Zhou, & Weitzman, 2015).If youth consider e-cigarettes as a gateway to tobacco use, signifying a disapproving and harmful attitude, then their intention to try is …show more content…
The majority of 15-17 year old African American and Hispanic American male e-cigarette users perceived that their friends had high social approval for e-cigarette use (Peters et al., 2013). Peers are the more important influences during the adolescent years as Peters et al. (2013) further concluded a negative association between smoking status of a friend and non-smoking intentions. So, in a peer group consisting of individuals who smoke electronic cigarettes, a higher perceived social pressure to also use e-cigarettes exists. If a high school male teenager perceives that his friends think e-cigarette use is a good thing or a healthier alternative to conventional cigarettes and if he wishes to be accepted into the social group, there is a likelihood of e-cigarette smoking