Anxiety sensitivity facets in relation to tobacco use, abstinence-related problems, and cognitions in treatment-seeking smokers

Abstract

Anxiety sensitivity (AS)—fear of anxiety-related experiences—has been implicated in smoking motivation and maintenance. In a cross-sectional design, we examined AS facets (physical, cognitive, and social concerns) in relation to tobacco use, abstinence-related problems, and cognitions in 473 treatment-seeking smokers. After controlling for sex, race, age, educational attainment, hypertension status, and neuroticism, linear regression models indicated that AS physical and cognitive concerns were associated with tobacco dependence severity (β = .13–.14, p < .01), particularly the severity of persistent smoking regardless of context or time of day (β = .14–.17, p < .01). All three AS facets were related to more severe problems during past quit attempts (β = .23–.27, p < .001). AS cognitive and social concerns were related to negative affect reduction smoking motives (β = .14, p < .01), but only the social concerns aspect of AS was related to pleasurable relaxation smoking motives and positive and negative reinforcement-related smoking outcome expectancies (β = .14–.17, p < .01). These data suggest that AS physical and cognitive concerns are associated with negative reinforcement-related smoking variables (e.g., abstinence-related problems), whereas the social concerns aspect of AS is associated with positive and negative reinforcement-related smoking variables. Together with past findings, current findings can usefully guide AS-oriented smoking cessation treatment development and refinement.

The relationships between sensation seeking and a spectrum of e-cigarette use behaviors: Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses specific to Texas adolescents

“…Consistent with our findings, results from Memetovic et al (2016) indicated that higher sensation seeking scores were associated with significantly higher odds of intention to use cigarettes after for covariates in a sample of eighth and ninth grade Canadian adolescents. To date, no study has examined factors associated with change in susceptibility to e-cigarette use, and research with respect to change in susceptibility to conventional cigarette use among adolescents has not examined sensation seeking as a predictor (Forrester, Biglan, Severson, & Smolkowski, 2007; Gritz et al, 2003; Weiss et al, 2006).…”

“…While this is the first study to date to examine the specific association between sensation seeking and susceptibility to e-cigarette use, the results from the present study support previous cross-sectional research examining the association with conventional cigarette use (Memetovic, Ratner, Gotay, & Richardson, 2016). Consistent with our findings, results from Memetovic et al (2016) indicated that higher sensation seeking scores were associated with significantly higher odds of intention to use cigarettes after for covariates in a sample of eighth and ninth grade Canadian adolescents.…”

Factor Analysis and Psychometric Properties of the Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale and the Minnesota Nicotine Withdrawal Scale-Revised: Italian Version

“…FTCD measures behavioral components of smoking, which are weakly associated to cigarette withdrawal symptoms [36]. Correlations between MNWS/MNWS-R total score/psychological symptoms subscale score and ASI-3 were moderate and consistent with [37] and with the evidence that anxiety sensitivity enhances acute nicotine withdrawal symptoms [38]. As expected, correlation coefficients between associated somatic features and ASI-3 scores were weak, since the first assesses only the physical symptoms.…”

Influencia de la sensibilidad a la ansiedad en una intervención psicológica para dejar de fumar

“…Un resultado que no esperábamos fue que las puntuaciones elevadas en SA social predijeran la abstinencia. Estudios previos han relacionado esta subescala con las expectativas de reforzamiento positivo y con la creencia de que fumar mejora el confort social (Buckner y Vinci, 2013;Guillot, Leventhal, Raines, Zvolensky y Schmidt, 2016), pero todavía no se conoce bien su papel en el proceso de dejar de fumar, por lo que debe seguir profundizándose en su estudio.…”