Acculturation, gender, health locus of control, and generational status as predictors of smoking behavior among Greek-Americans
Abstract
This study examined whether smoking behavior could be predicted by acculturation level, health locus of control, gender, and generational status. The target population consisted of Greek Americans from the New York City area who varied in acculturation levels and generational status. The Acculturation Rating Scale, the Health Attribution Test, and a smoking behavior scale developed by the National Cancer Institute were the measures used in this study. The study was carried out through a mail distribution process, and through on-site data collection. Participants were members of various Greek American social and cultural organizations. Smoking behavior was predicted by acculturation level and internal health locus of control. Generational status was associated with smoking behavior when other variables were not included in the analysis. Gender was not found to be a significant predictor of smoking behavior. Father's smoking status was a significant predictor of a participant's smoking status while mother's and best friend's smoking status were not significant predictors. Among smokers only internal health locus of control was a significant predictor of the number of cigarettes smoked each day. Finally, for the three generational groups and for gender, there were no differences in the number of cigarettes smoked each day, one's age upon smoking initiation, and the number of years one had been smoking.
Subject Area
Health education|Minority & ethnic groups|Sociology|Psychotherapy
Recommended Citation
Georgiades, Ismini, "Acculturation, gender, health locus of control, and generational status as predictors of smoking behavior among Greek-Americans" (1996). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI9708259.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI9708259
