Effects of individual characteristics and school environment on cigarette smoking among students ages 13-15: A multilevel analysis of the 2007 Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS) data from Vietnam

• Published in: Global public health 2011-04, Vol.6 (3), p.307-319
• Main Authors: Van Minh, Hoang, Hai, Phan Thi, Giang, Kim Bao, Nga, Pham Quynh, Khanh, Pham Huyen, Lam, Nguyen Tuan, Kinh, Ly Ngoc
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescent Behavior - psychology; Associations; Children; cigarette smoking; Correlation analysis; Curricula; Curriculum; Female; GYTS; Health Surveys; Humans; Logistic Models; Male; multilevel logistic regression model; Parents; Parents & parenting; Peer Group; Prevalence; Preventive programmes; Regression analysis; Risk; Risk Factors; School environment; schoolchildren; Schools; Sex Distribution; Smoking; Smoking - epidemiology; Smoking - psychology; Smoking cessation; Social Environment; Students; Surveys; Tobacco; Vietnam; Vietnam - epidemiology; Young people; Youth
• ISSN: 1744-1692; 1744-1706
• DOI: 10.1080/17441692.2010.517779

This paper aims to estimate the prevalence of cigarette smoking among students in Vietnam ages 13-15 and examines its relationship with compositional and contextual factors. The data used in this paper were obtained from the 2007 Global Youth Tobacco Survey conducted in nine provinces in Vietnam. A multilevel logistic regression model was applied to analyse the association between the current incidence of cigarette smoking and factors on both the individual and school level. The prevalence of cigarette smoking among students was 3.3% overall. The prevalence of smoking among male students (5.9%) was higher than that among females (1.2%). Parental smoking was a significant risk factor for smoking among the students. Having a friend who smoked was the strongest predictor of smoking status among the study subjects. We have demonstrated that school-level factors appeared to impact the prevalence of cigarette smoking among students ages 13-15. This paper highlights the importance of utilising an extensive range of actions to prevent students from using tobacco in Vietnam. These actions should include providing specific curricula for students that address both individual characteristics and the school environment. Further, prevention programmes should also target both parental- and peer-smoking issues.