Knowing Your Audience: Differences Between Hispanic Subgroups in Cigarette Use and Related Beliefs

Theoretical Background and research questions/hypothesis:  In light of repeated calls for culturally relevant health message delivery, it is surprising how frequently health research treats Hispanics as a single culture.  Hispanics in the US trace their ancestry to many different nations.  The histories of these nations differ and their cultures may differ in many ways. This suggests that although certain cultural beliefs may be common across Hispanic subgroups, the beliefs of these subgroups may also differ in important ways.  Some of these differences may impact health behaviors and the effectiveness of health communication.  This presentation focuses on Hispanics currently attending college in the continental US and compares the cigarette-related beliefs and behaviors of those identifying as having Mexican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, and Dominican heritage. These four groups were selected due to each making up relatively large percentages of the Hispanic population in the US.

Methods: These data are derived from a larger effort examining tobacco use by Hispanic college students. This effort was funded by Legacy Foundation and facilitated by the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities. Four geographically and ethnically diverse institutions in the U.S. were selected as recruitment sites (one each in California, Texas, Florida, and New York). Each site was selected based on high enrollment of one or more Hispanic subgroups of interest. Participants were recruited through email lists, flyers, and classroom announcements depending on the policies of each university, and were compensated for their time.  Those agreeing to participate completed a web-based questionnaire with branching and checks for attentiveness. After screening for inattentive responding, 1041 participants were found to belong to one of the groups of interest and retained for analysis (744 of Mexican heritage, 124 of Puerto Rican heritage, 59 of Cuban heritage, and 95 of Dominican heritage). 

Results:  The four Hispanic subgroups differed in likelihood of being a smoker. However, among those who smoked, groups did not differ in age of initiation or consumption. When controlling for smoking status, the four Hispanic subgroups also differed in attitudes towards smoking bans, beliefs regarding negative effects of smoking, and beliefs regarding negative effects of quitting (e.g., the severity of the withdrawal). They did not differ in their beliefs about the diseases associated with smoking, beliefs regarding positive effects of smoking or quitting, attitudes towards smoking around non-smokers or abstaining from smoking when with smokers, or the guilt they feel over smoking.

Conclusions:  Although Hispanic populations share a common ethnic designation, specific Hispanic subgroups differ from each other both in smoking behavior and important smoking-related beliefs. 

Implications for research and/or practice:  The effectiveness of prevention and cessation messages is likely to be enhanced by taking these differences into account when designing the messages.  What is effective for one group (e.g., those of Mexican heritage) will not necessarily be effective for another (e.g., those of Cuban heritage).