The Influence of Friends on Teen Vaping: A Mixed-methods Approach.
Thursday, July 15, 2021
Posted by: Natalia Gromov
Groom
AL, Vu TT, Landry RL, Kesh A, Hart JL, Walker KL, Wood LA, Robertson RM, Payne
TJ.
The Influence of Friends
on Teen Vaping: A Mixed-methods Approach.
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2021 Jun 24;18(13):6784. doi: 10.3390/ijerph18136784.
PMID: 34202600.
Vaping is popular among adolescents. Previous research has explored sources of
information and influence on youth vaping, including marketing, ads, family,
peers, social media, and the internet. This research endeavors to expand
understanding of peer influence. Our hypothesis is that friends' influence on
teen vapers' first electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) use varies by
demographic variables and awareness of ENDS advertising. In August-October
2017, youth (n = 3174) aged 13-18 completed an online survey to quantify ENDS
behaviors and attitudes and were invited to participate in follow-up online
research in November-December 2017 to probe qualitative context around
perceptions and motivations (n = 76). This analysis focused on the ENDS users,
defined as having ever tried any ENDS product, from the survey (n = 1549) and
the follow-up research (n = 39). Among survey respondents, friends were the
most common source of vapers' first ENDS product (60%). Most survey respondents
tried their first ENDS product while "hanging out with friends"
(54%). Among follow-up research participants, the theme of socializing was also
prominent. ENDS advertising and marketing through social media had a strong
association with friend networks; in fact, the odds of friends as source of the
first vaping experience were 2 times higher for those who had seen ENDS ads on
social media compared with other types of media. The influence of friends is
particularly evident among non-Hispanic Whites, Hispanics/Latinos, those living
in urban areas, those living in high-income households, those with higher
self-esteem, and those who experiment with vaping. These findings support the
premise that peer influence is a primary social influencer and reinforcer for
vaping. Being included in a popular activity appears to be a strong driving
force.
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