Reasons for Starting and Stopping Electronic Cigarette Use

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health

Jessica K. Pepper²  Kurt M. Ribisl²  Sherry L. Emery¹  Noel T. Brewer² 

[1] Institute for Health Research and Policy, University of Illinois at Chicago, 528 Westside Research Office Bldg., 1747 West Roosevelt Road, Chicago, IL 60608, USA; E-Mail:;Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina, Campus Box 7295, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; E-Mails:

关键词: electronic cigarettes;    e-cigarettes;    tobacco use;    smoking cessation;   

DOI  :  10.3390/ijerph111010345

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

The aim of our study was to explore reasons for starting and then stopping electronic cigarette (e-cigarette) use. Among a national sample of 3878 U.S. adults who reported ever trying e-cigarettes, the most common reasons for trying were curiosity (53%); because a friend or family member used, gave, or offered e-cigarettes (34%); and quitting or reducing smoking (30%). Nearly two-thirds (65%) of people who started using e-cigarettes later stopped using them. Discontinuation was more common among those whose main reason for trying was not goal-oriented (e.g., curiosity) than goal-oriented (e.g., quitting smoking) (81% vs. 45%, p < 0.001). The most common reasons for stopping e-cigarette use were that respondents were just experimenting (49%), using e-cigarettes did not feel like smoking cigarettes (15%), and users did not like the taste (14%). Our results suggest there are two categories of e-cigarette users: those who try for goal-oriented reasons and typically continue using and those who try for non-goal-oriented reasons and then typically stop using. Research should distinguish e-cigarette experimenters from motivated users whose decisions to discontinue relate to the utility or experience of use. Depending on whether e-cigarettes prove to be effective smoking cessation tools or whether they deter cessation, public health programs may need distinct strategies to reach and influence different types of users.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.