Table 2.
Smoking and cessation behaviours by Aboriginality.
| Characteristics | Smoking cessation RCT | 2009 NSW inmate health survey | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aboriginal men % (N = 64) |
Non-aboriginal men % (N = 361) |
Total men % (N = 425) |
Aboriginal men % (N = 259) |
Non-aboriginal men % (N = 538) |
Total men % (N = 797) |
|
| Smoking behaviours and history | ||||||
| Current smoker | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 83.2† | 71.1 | |
| Mean age when first smoked tobacco (+SD) | 12.7† (4.3) | 13.9 (4.2) | 13.7 (4.3) | 13.6 (5.0) | 14.0 (4.5) | 13.9 (4.7) |
| Mean age when first smoked tobacco daily (+SD) | 15.1 (4.7) | 15.5 (4.1) | 15.5 (4.2) | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Mean years when smoked tobacco (+SD) | 19.2 (9.9) | 19.9 (10.3) | 19.8 (10.2) | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Mean carbon monoxide reading (+SD) | 13.1 (7.8) | 14.5 (7.7) | 14.3 (7.8) | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Mean cigarettes smoked per day (+SD) | 22.7 (8.4) | 23.2 (10.0) | 23.2 (9.8) | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Smoking 20+ cigarettes per day | 67.2 | 70.6 | 70.1 | 18.3†∗ | 27.5 | 24.2 |
| High tobacco dependence (Fagerstrom 6+) |
84.4 | 82.6 | 82.8 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Sharing a cell with a smoker | 42.2 | 31.9 | 33.5 | 62.9 | 51.9 | 55.1 |
| Smoking White Ox (loose tobacco) | 98.4 | 97.0 | 97.2 | 97.8 | 94.9 | 96.6 |
| Reason for smoking: spouse smoked/helps fit into group | 59.4† | 36.6 | 40.0 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
|
| ||||||
| Smoking cessation history | ||||||
| Quitting behaviours in past year | ||||||
| Giving up more than one month | 12.5 | 13.0 | 12.9 | 17.2 | 22.1 | 20.4 |
| Trying to give up unsuccessfully | 65.6 | 59.3 | 60.2 | 43.7 | 52.4 | 49.3 |
| Lower tar or nicotine content | 14.1† | 5.3 | 6.6 | 4.0 | 9.6 | 7.6 |
| Reduced amount of tobacco smoked | 50.0 | 47.4 | 47.8 | 56.3 | 57.2 | 56.9 |
| Quitting on purpose for 24 hours | 59.4 | 52.6 | 53.7 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Any type of quitting behaviour | 75.0 | 73.1 | 73.4 | 82.7 | 81.6 | 82.0 |
| Mean times of trying to quit smoking (+SD) | 2.8 (3.3) | 2.6 (7.4) | 2.6 (7.9) | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Stages of readiness to quit smoking | ||||||
| Seriously thinking of cutting down | 98.4 | 94.7 | 95.3 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Seriously thinking about quitting | 100.0 | 99.7 | 99.8 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Plannig to quit smoking | 100.0 | 99.2 | 99.3 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Very sure of wanting to cut down smoking | 92.2 | 89.2 | 89.7 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Very sure of being able to cut down smoking | 43.8 | 48.2 | 47.5 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Very determined to cut down | 81.3 | 83.9 | 83.5 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Very sure of being able to quit smoking | 40.6 | 50.1 | 48.7 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
| Very determined to quit smoking | 90.6 | 86.7 | 87.3 | N/A | N/A | N/A |
†Statistically significant P < 0.05 comparing Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal male inmates. *Categories started at 21+ cigarettes per day.