Back to Annual Meeting

Back to Annual Meeting

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Donald Rubin, MA, PHD¹, Eric Jenkins, MA², Susan Shlaer, MEd³, and Edward Panetta, MA, PHD². (1) Center for Health Communication, University of Georgia, 110 Terrell Hall, Athens, GA 30602-1725, 706.542.3247, drubin@uga.edu, (2) Department of Speech Communication, University of Georgia, 110 Terrell Hall, Athens, GA 30602-1725, (3) Education Department, Lee Arrendale State Prison, POB 709, Alto, GA 30510-0709

Smoking prevalence estimates among the more than 2.1 million incarcerated individuals in the US jails and prisons range as high as 80%. Similar rates likely obtain among the five million Americans currently on parole or probation. Because of the role of tobacco in the underground prison economy and culture, it constitutes a persistent health risk even in so-called smoke free prisons. The present study investigates several factors that may be impediments to modifying tobacco use and attitudes in this population: low levels of print literacy and of health literacy and high resistance to persuasion. Approximately 200 female and 300 male inmates in medium security state prisons were administered an adaptation of the Youth Tobacco Survey. Their comprehension was tested for smoking cessation materials from (1) the American Lung Association and (2) National Commission on Correctional Health and for (3) tobacco industry internal documents on marketing. Measures of resistance to persuasion and of health literacy were also administered. Think-aloud protocols were obtained from a subsample, and coded for critical thinking engendered by those reading passages. Preliminary analyses indicate low levels of knowledge about tobacco risks and low health literacy in general. On the other hand, incarcerated individuals exhibited strong comprehension of smoking cessation materials and also accurately inferred the intent of the tobacco industry documents. High resistance to persuasion and counterarguing also emerged. Findings imply that incarcerated individuals will be most receptive to balanced information allowing them to draw their own conclusions, especially regarding their status as targets of industry manipulation.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify factors limiting the efficacy of tobacco control programs for incarcerated individuals.
• Evaluate the appropriateness of selected tobacco control materials with respect to incarcertated individuals literacy levels.
• Assess health literacy and tobacco-related knowledge among incarcerated individuals.
• Articulate a rationale for exposing incarcerated individuals to smoking modification materials that are more presentational than persuasive, including presentation of tobacco industry documents about which participants can draw their own conclusions.

Keywords: Correctional Health Care, Tobacco Control

Related Web page: www.tobacco.uga.edu

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Not Answered