Stress and coping as determinants of adolescent smoking behaviour

Relationships between perceived stress, coping, and smoking behavior were examined both cross-sectionally and prospectively in a large sample of English adolescents recruited from secondary schools in East Sussex. Significant cross-sectional and prospective associations are reported between smoking behavior and perceived stress, “cathartic” coping, and perception of smoking as a coping resource. The hypothesis that female adolescents smoke more than do males because they perceive more stress in their lives and cope with it differently was not supported.