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Persistence and amplitude of cigarette demand in relation to quit intentions and attempts

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Abstract

Introduction

The cigarette purchase task (CPT) is a method that can be used to assess the relative value of cigarettes. Based on cigarettes purchased across a price range, five derived metrics (Omax, Pmax, breakpoint, intensity, and elasticity) can assess cigarette demand. A study with adolescent smokers found that these could be reduced to two latent factors: persistence (price insensitivity) and amplitude (volumetric consumption). We sought to replicate this structure with adult smokers and examine how these variables relate to cessation efforts.

Method

Web-based survey conducted in 2014 among adult (18 years and above) current daily cigarette smokers (N = 1194). Participants completed the CPT, Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND), reported past-year quit attempts, and future quit intentions. We included published scales assessing perceived prevalence of smoking, social reactivity, smoker identity, and risk perception.

Results

Our analysis supported two latent variables, persistence and amplitude, which correlated positively with FTND. Persistence was correlated with several psychosocial factors and was higher among those intending to quit very soon, but did not vary by number of past-year quit attempts. Amplitude differed across quit attempts and intention (p < 0.001) and, in multivariable models, was significantly associated with lower 30-day quit intention (OR = 0.76, p = 0.001).

Conclusions

Persistence and amplitude factors characterized CPT data in adults, discriminated known groups (e.g., smokers by intentions to quit), and were positively associated with nicotine dependence. Factor scores also appear to relate to certain psychosocial factors, such as smoker identity and perceptions of risk. Future research should examine the predictive validity of these constructs.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Health Behavior, Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Buffalo, NY, USA

    Richard J. O’Connor & Sarah E. Adkison

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina & Hollings Cancer Center, Charleston, SC, USA

    Bryan W. Heckman & K. Michael Cummings

  3. Center for Global Tobacco Control, Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA

    Vaughan W. Rees

  4. Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA

    Dorothy K. Hatsukami

  5. Virginia Tech Carillion Research Institute, Roanoke, VA, USA

    Warren K. Bickel

Authors
  1. Richard J. O’Connor
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  2. Bryan W. Heckman
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  3. Sarah E. Adkison
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  4. Vaughan W. Rees
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  5. Dorothy K. Hatsukami
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  6. Warren K. Bickel
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  7. K. Michael Cummings
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Richard J. O’Connor.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Funding

This work was supported by a cooperative agreement from the National Cancer Institute (U19CA157345). Bryan W. Heckman was supported by K12DA031794.

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O’Connor, R.J., Heckman, B.W., Adkison, S.E. et al. Persistence and amplitude of cigarette demand in relation to quit intentions and attempts. Psychopharmacology 233, 2365–2371 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-016-4286-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-016-4286-x

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