School of Sociology and Anthropology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong, China.
Department of Sociology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA.
Nicotine Tob Res. 2023 Jan 5;25(2):237-246. doi: 10.1093/ntr/ntac050.
Prior studies on the association between the intensity of and motives for vaping e-cigarettes have highlighted the psychological dynamics of motivational changes, but less about how vaping motives may shift as a function of risk perceptions exacerbated by unanticipated events. This study frames the COVID-19 pandemic as an exacerbating threat to pulmonary health, and tests how e-cigarette users' risk perceptions of COVID-19 are related to different motives for vaping and ultimately the intensity of e-cigarette use.
An online survey of e-cigarette users in the United States (n = 562) was conducted during April 2020 when much of the United States was under "lockdown" conditions. We distinguished three types of vaping motives (health, socialization, and dependence) and established the classification with confirmatory factor analysis. Structural equation modeling was conducted for path analyses and mediation tests.
All three vaping motives were significantly associated with greater use intensity. A heightened risk perception of e-cigarette users' vulnerability to COVID-19 was inversely associated with use intensity (-.18, p < .01) and health motives for vaping (-.27, p < .001), but not associated with socialization and dependence motivations. Health motives for vaping mediated 35% of the association between COVID-19 risk perceptions and use intensity.
Our findings indicate that risk perceptions of exacerbated threats may reduce e-cigarette use directly, and also indirectly through shifting certain types of motivations for vaping. Beyond elucidating the relational dynamics between vaping psychology and health risks, these results also indicate health professionals may leverage the pandemic to promote nicotine cessation or reduced use.
Little is known about how vaping motives shift after unanticipated events such as pandemics. This study contributes to knowledge of how the use of e-cigarettes is motivated by different dimensions of rationales and exogenous risks. Exploiting the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, we found risk perceptions are associated with the intensity of e-cigarette use indirectly specifically through health motivations. Risk perceptions are not associated with socialization and dependence motives for vaping.
先前关于电子烟使用强度和动机之间关联的研究强调了动机变化的心理动态，但对于由于意外事件而加剧的风险感知如何影响电子烟使用动机的变化知之甚少。本研究将 COVID-19 大流行视为对肺部健康的加剧威胁，并检验了电子烟使用者对 COVID-19 的风险感知如何与不同的电子烟使用动机相关，最终与电子烟使用强度相关。
2020 年 4 月，在美国进行了一项针对电子烟使用者的在线调查，当时美国大部分地区都处于“封锁”状态。我们区分了三种电子烟使用动机（健康、社交和依赖），并通过验证性因素分析建立了分类。进行结构方程建模以进行路径分析和中介测试。
所有三种电子烟使用动机都与更高的使用强度显著相关。电子烟使用者对自身易感染 COVID-19 的风险感知与使用强度呈负相关（-.18，p<.01），与电子烟使用的健康动机呈负相关（-.27，p<.001），但与社交和依赖动机无关。电子烟使用的健康动机在 COVID-19 风险感知与使用强度之间的关联中起中介作用，占 35%。
我们的研究结果表明，加剧威胁的风险感知可能会直接减少电子烟的使用，也可能通过改变某些类型的电子烟使用动机间接减少使用。除了阐明电子烟使用心理与健康风险之间的关系动态外，这些结果还表明，健康专业人员可能会利用大流行来促进尼古丁戒断或减少使用。
对于意外事件（如大流行）后电子烟使用动机的变化知之甚少。本研究有助于了解电子烟使用是如何受到不同维度的推理和外生风险的驱动。利用 COVID-19 大流行的出现，我们发现风险感知与电子烟使用强度之间存在间接关联，特别是通过健康动机。风险感知与电子烟使用的社交和依赖动机无关。
