''Quit & Win'' Contests Among College Students: Predictors of Long-Term Smoking Abstinence.

PURPOSE: To determine smoking abstinence rates and predictors of abstinence among college students enrolled in a campus-based Quit & Win contest. DESIGN: Pre-post measure with no comparison group. SETTING: Contests conducted on seven college campuses in 2007. SUBJECTS: Subjects (N = 484) were 23.7 ± 6.8 years of age, 61% female, 16.3% nonwhite, and smoked 12.5 ± 7.8 cigarettes per day on 28.0 ± 4.8 days in the past month. INTERVENTION: Participants abstinent for the 30-day contest were eligible for a lottery-based prize. Assessments were completed at baseline, end of contest, and 6 months after enrollment. MEASURES: The 6-month survey assessed retrospective abstinence during the contest period and the prior 6 months and 7- and 30-day point prevalence abstinence at the time of the survey. ANALYSIS: Chi-square test was used to compare baseline characteristics among participants from 2-versus 4-year schools. Smoking abstinence was assessed by participant self-report. Both a simple imputation method (i.e., missing = smoking) and completers-only analyses were conducted. Stepwise logistic regression was used to determine baseline predictors of abstinence. RESULTS: Thirty-day abstinence rate was 52.5% during the contest month and 20.5% at the 6-month follow-up. Baseline intention to stay quit (odds ratio [OR] = 1.56, p = .01), cigarettes smoked per day (OR = .67, p = .04), and 2-year (vs. 4-year) college (OR = 1.65, p = .05) predicted abstinence at 6 months. CONCLUSION: Intention to stay quit even without winning a prize, a measure of intrinsic motivation, predicted both short- and long-term abstinence.

Social contingencies and college quit and win contest: a qualitative inquiry.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the social contingencies associated with participation in a college Quit and Win contest to promote smoking cessation. METHODS: Six focus groups (N = 27) were conducted with college students who participated in a Quit and Win research trial. RESULTS: Themes included: (1) participants reluctant to disclose quit decision; (2) perception of little support in their quit attempt, and (3) the social environment as a trigger for relapse. CONCLUSIONS: Although Quit and Win contests appear to motivate an initial quit attempt, the reluctance of smokers to disclose their quit attempt limits the potential positive impact of social support when utilizing this public service campaign.