Factors Associated with Delayed Tobacco Uptake Among Vietnamese/Asian and Arabic Youth in Sydney, NSW

Objective: To describe the smoking behaviour and possible reasons for delayed uptake of tobacco smoking among Arabic and Vietnamese/Asian speaking senior school students in Sydney

Method: A descriptive study involving four adult in-depth interviews and five student focus groups plus a quantitative survey of 2,573 school students attending Years 10 and 11 from 12 high schools with high Vietnamese and Arabic populations was conducted in Sydney in 1998. Self-reported smoking behaviour and peer, parent, school and cultural background information was collected.

Results: Students who smoke were more likely to have more than $20 a week pocket money, be from an English-speaking background, have no rules at home about smoking, have family members who smoke, not feel close to their father, spend three or more evenings a week out with friends, and have negative perceptions of the school environment and of the level of teacher support. They were less likely to smoke if they perceived their peers to be unsupportive.

Conclusions: These results confirm the delayed uptake of smoking among students from a Vietnamese/Asian and Arabic-speaking backgrounds compared with those from an English-speaking background. A number of family and school factors were associated with smoking.

Implications: Positive parental modelling, active parenting including awareness of or supervision of student leisure time, strict rules about not smoking and less pocket money are important strategies for preventing smoking among all adolescents.