PURPOSE: This study was designed to identify the factors affecting the experience of smoking in middle school girls. A comprehensive analysis of individual and family factors was used.
METHOD: The students in this descriptive survey on causal relations were 433 girls enrolled in middle schools selected by convenience sampling. The data were collected in November-December 2003 and logistic regression analysis was used to build a forecast model.
FINDINGS: The findings showed the following, 1) Individual factors such as grade, alcohol consumption, sexual experience and the frequency of exposure to pornographic materials, and 2) family factors such as parental living arrangement were significant factors.
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION: The experience of smoking among Korean middle school girls was associated not only with individual factors, but also with family factors, which exert a strong influence on health behavior. There is therefore a need for school-based smoking prevention programs, which deal comprehensively with these factors that influence smoking. It is recommended that a program be developed that will help to control the variables identified in this study along with follow?up study to verify the model.
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