Perceived Self-Efficacy to Avoid Cigarette Smoking and Addiction: Differences Between Hispanics and Non-Hispanic Whites

We interviewed 263 Hispanic and 150 non-Hispanic white smokers in order to evaluate cultural differences in perceived self-efficacy to avoid cigarette smoking, and addiction to cigarettes. Non-Hispanic whites have higher levels of addiction to nicotine and smoke more cigarettes than Hispanics, but increasing acculturation minimized cultural differences. Perceived self-efficacy to avoid smoking was negatively related to the perceived level of addiction and to self-reported cigarette consumption in both ethnic groups. Acculturation tended to be inversely related to self-efficacy, but directly related to addiction among Hispanics. The higher self-efficacy to avoid smoking and lower addiction levels indicate that Hispanics may have higher quit rates and lower relapse rates compared to non-Hispanic whites after comparable cessation interventions.