https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5609-6038
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ABSTRACT
Social environments like family, peers, schools, communities and media with which adolescents interact; live and grow up influence their personal behaviour (including smoking behaviour). This study aimed at investigating the social environmental factors related to smoking among adolescents. This study was a cross-sectional one involving 587 participants. Targeted social environmental factors were categorized into; the peer group, family group and school group. The approval and discouragement statements approach about smoking were used in these groups. Univariate and multivariate statistical analyses were performed to determine the relationship between cigarette smoking and the social-environmental variables. Respondent students of age 16 years dominated the study (39.7%), with the prevalence of smokers among respondents being 16.8% (n = 99). This study found social environmental factors of; peer (friend), family and teacher who smoked to be significantly associated with the smoking behaviours of students. The study highlighted the importance of strategies to prevent smoking which targeted both the adolescents and among their social environments; including their parents and teachers. This was because their smoking statuses and permissive attitudes towards smoking were significantly associated with the smoking habit among adolescents.
Acknowledgments
We would like to extend our gratitude to the Research and Development Institution of the University of Muhammadiyah Prof. Dr Hamka for the financial support provided for the entire process of this research with grant number 451/F.03.07/2017.
Disclosure statement
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.