Generation 1.5: Years in the United States and Other Factors Affecting Smoking Behaviors among Asian
Tuesday, May 24, 2022
Posted by: Natalia Gromov
Shi
L, Mayorga M, Su D, Li Y, Martin E, Zhang D.
Generation 1.5: Years in
the United States and Other Factors Affecting Smoking Behaviors among Asian
Americans.
Ethn Dis.
2022;32(2):75-80. Published 2022 Apr 21. doi:10.18865/ed.32.2.75
Introduction. Generation
1.5, immigrants who moved to a different country before adulthood, are
hypothesized to have unique cognitive and behavioral patterns. We examined the
possible differences in cigarette smoking between Asian subpopulations who
arrived in the United States at different life stages.
Methods. Using
the Asian subsample of the 2015 Tobacco Use Supplement to the Current
Population Survey, we tested this Generation 1.5 hypothesis with their smoking
behavior. This dataset was chosen because its large sample size allowed for a
national-level analysis of the Asian subsamples by sex, while other national
datasets might not have adequate sample sizes for analysis of these
subpopulations. The outcome variable was defined as whether the survey
respondent had ever smoked 100 cigarettes or more, with the key independent
variable operationalized as whether the respondent was: 1) born in the United
States; 2) entered the United States before 12; 3) entered between 12 and 19;
and 4) entered after 19. Logistic regressions were run to examine the
associations with covariates including the respondent's age, educational
attainment, and household income.
Results. Asian
men who entered before 12 were less likely to have ever smoked 100 cigarettes
than those who immigrated after 19; for Asian women, three groups (born in the
United States, entered before 12, entered between 12 and 19) were more likely
to have smoked 100 cigarettes than those who immigrated after 19.
Conclusions. While
Asian men who came to the United States before 12 were less at risk for
cigarette smoking than those who immigrated in adulthood, the pattern was the
opposite among Asian women. Those who spent their childhood in the United
States were more likely to smoke than those who came to the United States in
adulthood. These patterns might result from the cultural differences between US
and Asian countries, and bear policy relevance for the tobacco control efforts
among Asian Americans.
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