Testing Different Anti-smoking Messages Among Chinese Young Adult Smokers and Nonsmokers

Summary

Young adults are particularly vulnerable to psychological distress during the transition from adolescence to adulthood, making them more susceptible to developing persistent substance use. The tobacco industry capitalizes on this vulnerability by using marketing tactics to promote tobacco initiation and facilitate the progression from experimental tobacco use to long-term use. In China, where the average age of starting daily smoking is 21.1 years old, the number of current young adult smokers exceeds 29 million. It is crucial to develop effective communication messages to counter the tobacco industry's marketing strategies and protect the health of young adults in China. This project aims to test the effects of different anti-smoking message themes among Chinese young adults. In this online randomized clinical trial, participants will be randomly assigned to one of five antismoking message conditions. The investigators will compare the effects of these themes with each other and with the control condition.

Conditions

• Smoking Prevention

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Health effects

Participants in this arm will watch 3 short videos about the smoking-related diseases during the survey data collection.

BEHAVIORAL

Tobacco industry manipulation

Participants in this arm will watch 3 short videos about how the tobacco industry uses targeted marketing and manipulative tactics aimed at youth and young adults during the survey data collection.

BEHAVIORAL

Secondhand smoke

Participants in this arm will watch 3 short videos about the risks of secondhand smoke exposure during the survey data collection.

BEHAVIORAL

Mentral health

Participants in this arm will watch 3 short videos about the effects of smoking on mental health during the survey data collection.

BEHAVIORAL

Social acceptability

Participants in this arm will watch 3 short videos about how smoking is socially unacceptable in China during the survey data collection.

BEHAVIORAL

Control

Participants in this arm will watch 3 short videos about drinking bottled water during the survey data collection. These messages display specific water products and describe hydration as a healthy activity.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Georgia State University

  lead OTHER

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

PREVENTION

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

25 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2025-09-01

Primary Completion

2025-10-01

Completion

2025-10-01

Countries

• United States
• China

Study Locations