Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare and contrast biopsychosocial characteristics and processes of change (POC) between 1-month quitters and relapsers among male smokers in Korea.
Methods: This study employed a prospective study design. Forty-one male smokers were recruited on one university campus. The instruments used in this study included blood pressure (BP), body mass index, salivary cortisol, perceived stress, self-efficacy, and POC. After collection of baseline data, participants were encouraged to adopt smoking cessation, either by obtaining smoking cessation counseling or self-abstinence. Baseline data and data collected after 1 month from smoking cessation were compared.
Results: The mean age of the participants was 24.9 years (SD = 1.90 years), and 51.2% were overweight or obese. According to results of the study, SBP, DBP, and perceived stress were significantly lower, whereas self-efficacy was significantly higher among quitters, compared with relapsers, after 1 month (p < .05). Results of within-group comparison indicated that, among POC, self-liberation, helping relationship, and reinforcement management showed a significant decrease among 1-month relapsers (p < .05), whereas, counter conditioning showed a significant increase among 1-month quitters (p < .05).
Conclusions: According to the results of this study, BP and perceived stress showed a significant decrease among 1-month quitters, whereas those less likely to utilize behavioral processes were more likely to have relapsed after 1 month.