Antecedents and Postcedents of Temptations During Smoking Cessation: An Ecological Momentary Assessment Study
Abstract
Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of preventable death in the U.S. Most cigarette smokers want to quit but are unable to do so. A better understanding of the psychological processes underlying relapse may lead to better interventions. Theory and data suggest that cognitive biases, including attentional bias, may elicit craving and temptations to smoke, and undermine cessation attempts. However, few studies have examined these relationships in the field and none have examined the time course of these relationships. This study used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to examine the relationship between attentional bias and temptations/craving during the first week of a quit attempt. Participants (n=119) carried around a Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) for one week and completed a smoking Stroop task and a self-report measure of attentional bias at random times (random assessments; RAs), and at temptation episodes (temptation assessments; TAs). The overall goal was to examine the association between attentional bias and temptations/craving. Specific Aim 1 examined the relationship between attentional bias and Assessment Type during attempted abstinence from smoking. Specific Aim 2 examined whether attentional bias was elevated prior to temptations. Specific Aim 3 examined whether attentional bias was elevated after temptations. Exploratory analyses examined associations between attentional bias and craving, relapse status, and race. For Specific Aim 1, self-reported attentional bias (but not the smoking Stroop effect) was higher at TAs than RAs. For Specific Aim 2, there was little evidence that attentional bias was elevated in the hours before a temptation. For Specific Aim 3, self-reported attentional bias was elevated at RAs occurring in the 4 hours after a TA. Lagged analyses revealed that self-reported attentional bias predicted craving at the next assessment, and vice versa. Self-reported attentional bias was generally higher in individuals.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jul 09, 2018
- Accession Number
- AD1128445
Entities
People
- John P. Lammers
Organizations
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences