Hannah Brewer

Teenage Tobacco Use:: an Examination of Teenagers' Perceptions of Anti-tobacco Campaigns and Education Hannah Brewer

The purpose of this study was to examine teenagers? perceptions of anti-tobacco campaigns and education. The following four research questions were explored: (a) Do teens that use tobacco products have different perceptions of anti-tobacco campaigns and education than teens who refrain from tobacco use?; (b) Is there a relationship between negative perceptions of anti-tobacco messages and reported tobacco use?; (c) Will counter-industry media campaigns or peer education yield more positive responses than fear and health appeals?; (d) Will peer education be perceived as a favorable means of anti-tobacco education? The subjects (N=204) included in this study were students who were eighteen years of age or older and attending five different public high schools in western Pennsylvania. A survey was used as a means of data collection. Student responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics, chi-square analyses, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Tukey post hoc analysis, and multiple regression analysis.