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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Carol B. Cunradi, MPH, PhD, Roland S. Moore, PhD, and Genevieve M. Ames, PhD. Prevention Research Center, Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation, 1995 University Avenue, Suite 450, Berkeley, CA 94704, 510-883-5771, cunradi@prev.org

The purpose of this study is to estimate the effect of occupational factors on current cigarette smoking among male & female Navy careerists. The sample consisted of 2,772 careerists (at least 7 years of service) between the ages of 26-45 who voluntarily completed confidential self-administered questionnaires on substance use and occupational factors during 2001-2002. Overall weighted response rate was 61%. Participants were coded as current smokers if they reported smoking at least one cigarette in the past 30 days. Smoking prevalence (26%) did not differ between males and females. Using a series of gender-stratified multivariate logistic regression models, a two-stage analytic strategy was employed to first estimate the demographic and then occupational correlates of smoking among Navy careerists. For males and females, the results indicate that enlisted careerists were significantly more likely to report current smoking than officers; African American careerists were significantly less likely to report smoking than white careerists. Additionally, a composite index of self-rated work and family stress was significantly associated with smoking among males (Odds Ratio [OR] = 1.17; 95% Confidence Interval [CI] = 1.01, 1.35). Females serving on a deployed ship were significantly more likely to report smoking than females not currently deployed (OR = 1.73; 95% CI = 1.19, 12.29), and self-rated frequency of work problems was associated with increased risk of smoking (OR=1.29; 95% CI = 1.13, 1.48). These findings highlight the need to elucidate the pathways by which occupational factors may contribute to smoking behavior among Navy careerists.

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