ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: "Social nicotine dependence" is a newly-coined phrase for describing a psychological and psychosocial state associated with smoking. That new dependence is defined as a misperception of smoking caused by smokers' attempts, for example, to deny the ill effects of tobacco and/or to justify themselves by regarding smoking as acceptable cultural and social behavior. It can be quantified by a 10-item questionnaire, the Kano Test for Social Nicotine Dependence (KTSND). We examined the internal consistency as well as the criterion-related and construct validity and factor structure of KTSND. METHODS: Self-administered questionnaires including the KTSND, smoking status, and stages in quitting smoking only for current smokers were collected from 666 industrial workers. RESULTS: The internal consistency of the KTSND assessed by Cronbach's alpha coefficient was 0.77. In addition, we found that an 8-item combination from among 10 items had a higher coefficient of 0.80. KTSND scores differed among three groups of smoking status as a criterion. Factor analysis clarified two potential factors: "an overestimation of smoking's effects to enhance physical and mental status" and "an insistence on smoking as acceptable cultural and social behavior." CONCLUSION: The KTSND proved to be valid in terms of the internal consistency and the inclusion of two key aspects of the misperception of smoking.