Norm Spreading or Behavioral Compensating -- Do the Clean Indoor Air Laws Increase Voluntary Home Smoke Free Rules?

Objectives: We examine whether the clean indoor air laws increase the adoption of voluntary home smoke free rules among smoking households. Methods We use Tobacco Use Supplements to Current Population Survey from 1992 to 2007 to estimate the likelihood of a person living with home smoke free rule depending upon one's individual characteristics, household factors, and whether or not being covered by clean indoor air laws.

Results The preliminary results show that the older, male, married, higher educated, having higher family income, and living with children are more likely being covered by home smoke free rules. People covered by clean indoor air laws, either state laws or local ordinances, are more likely to be covered by voluntary home smoke free rules by 6 percentage points than those who do not have clean indoor air laws at all. We also find that people living in places with stronger local ordinances than the surrounding state law are more likely having the voluntary home smoke free rules than their counterparts.

Conclusions Although the adoption of clean indoor air laws for public places in many jurisdictions creates a concern that these laws will lead to more, or at least unchanged, smoking at home, we find evidence however that adoption of clean air laws increases the likelihood that family households voluntarily implement smoke free home rules. This study fills in the gap of knowledge of the association between clean indoor air laws and voluntary home smoke free rules.