"Hmmm, I think I'll try a cigarette"
So what makes people usually try cigarettes as teenagers? You remember having zits, braces, and no self-esteem. If you have tried one, what made you try?
There are a ton of possible motivations for teenage smoking. In an email questionnaire study, of those who considered themselves nonsmokers, 11.5% stated they would "try cigarette smoking during the next 12 months". 7.9% of the respondents said they were unsure whether they would initiate smoking in the next 12 months. The most popular reasons for nonsmokers to start smoking were either a friend smoked or stress (DeBernardo, Aldinger, Dawood, Hanson, Lee, Rinaldi, 1999).
Young
women may be more susceptible to outside influences than young men. Women are
also more likely to be depressed, which could lead to cigarette smoking. But
what it comes down to is that cigarette smoking leads to cigarette smoking.
It's a vicious cycle and that's because of the negative experiences people have
during withdrawal that are prevalent after addiction has begun(DeBernardo, et
al., 1999).
Smokers and nonsmokers have different personality characteristics as well. Some studies suggest that extroverts are more likely to smoke because they are bored and need excitement. Introverts, on the other hand, need to smoke because of stress and tension. Social comparison is another example that may lead teens to smoke by considering it a sign of independence. There may be cues in the environment to smoke, like a lack of restrictions in dormitories or parental supervision (DeBernardo, et al., 1999). Certainly the media can account for a teen's desire to smoke. We'll talk more about the tobacco industry in a little bit.