Tan Grace Ping Ping, Tan Xian Zhen, van der Eijk Yvette
Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, National University of Singapore and National University Health System, Singapore.
Addict Behav Rep. 2024 Jun 7;20:100556. doi: 10.1016/j.abrep.2024.100556. eCollection 2024 Dec.
Singapore has one the world's strictest e-cigarette (vaping) regulations, with bans on e-cigarette import, sale, purchase, use and possession. Nevertheless, Singapore is seeing a growing vaping trend. Beyond estimates of vaping prevalence, little is known about vaping in countries where it is banned or the features and drivers of such illegal vaping cultures. This qualitative study thus explored the characteristics of Singapore's illegal vaping culture.
We held ten focus group discussions with 63 Singaporeans aged 21-40 years, exploring participants' experiences and views related to vaping in Singapore. Transcripts of the discussions were coded using deductive and inductive coding methods.
Despite its illegal status, vaping was perceived as appealing due to the novelty flavours, ease of use, and convenient access. Harm perceptions were mixed, with concerns over the adverse health impacts along with beliefs that vaping was innocuous when used in moderation. A conspicuous vaping culture among young people, along with perceptions of lax enforcement, drove beliefs that vaping is an entrenched social norm in Singapore. This belief was in turn associated with a sentiment that Singapore should introduce a regulated e-cigarette market to better control its use among the general population.
The reinforcement of vaping as a social norm appears to be driving an illegal vaping culture in Singapore. Measures that denormalise vaping could help to strengthen the effectiveness of the vaping ban.
新加坡拥有世界上最严格的电子烟（雾化）法规之一，禁止电子烟的进口、销售、购买、使用和持有。然而，新加坡的电子烟使用趋势却在不断增长。除了对电子烟流行率的估计外，对于在已禁止使用电子烟的国家中电子烟的使用情况，以及这种非法电子烟文化的特征和驱动因素，我们所知甚少。因此，本定性研究探讨了新加坡非法电子烟文化的特征。
我们与63名年龄在21至40岁之间的新加坡人进行了十次焦点小组讨论，探讨参与者在新加坡与电子烟相关的经历和观点。讨论记录采用演绎和归纳编码方法进行编码。
尽管电子烟处于非法地位，但由于其新奇的口味、易用性和便捷的获取途径，它仍被认为具有吸引力。对危害的看法不一，有人担心其对健康的不利影响，也有人认为适度使用电子烟是无害的。年轻人中明显的电子烟文化，以及对执法宽松的看法，使得人们认为电子烟在新加坡是一种根深蒂固的社会规范。这种看法反过来又引发了一种观点，即新加坡应该引入一个受监管的电子烟市场，以便更好地控制其在普通人群中的使用。
将电子烟强化为一种社会规范似乎正在推动新加坡的非法电子烟文化。使电子烟去规范化的措施可能有助于加强电子烟禁令的有效性。
