Smoking behavior, nicotine dependency, and motivation to cessation among smokers in the preparation stage of change

OBJECTIVE: To investigate selected constructs of the transtheoretical model (TTM) of behavior change regarding smoking behavior among people in the preparation stage, as well as motivation for cessation and nicotine dependency. METHODS: A convenience sample of 123 smokers, during between June to and September 2011, completed the Persian version of the short form of a smoking questionnaire based on TTM, the Fagerstrom nicotine dependence test, and the motivational test. RESULTS: Motivation for cessation was great (16.35 ± 2.45). The negative affects of self-efficacy were higher than those to other situations (4.02 ± 0.84). The pros and cons of smoking were 2.69 ± 1.00 and 3.78 ± 0.78, respectively. Temptation was influenced by nicotine dependency (P < 0.05). Early initiation of smoking was significantly associated with severe nicotine dependency (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The results confirm the role of temptation, increase in the cons, decrease in the pros, and nicotine dependency.