Structural and Functional Support in the Prediction of Smoking Cessation in Caregivers of Children with Asthma

Caregivers of children with asthma smoke at rates similar to the general population. Research on the relative importance of structural or functional social support in smoking cessation has been mixed. Participants were smokers (N = 154) who were caregivers of children with asthma. Both functional (Interpersonal Support Evaluation List) and structural social support (living with another smoker, partner status, and the proportion of smoking friends) were measured at baseline. Participants received an asthma-education and smoking cessation intervention based on Motivational Interviewing. Biochemically-verified abstinence was assessed at six months post treatment. Results indicated that functional support predicted smoking abstinence even when controlling for relevant covariates and structural support (OR = .896, p = .025). Exploratory analyses revealed that this effect was driven primarily by the self-esteem ISEL subscale. Smoking cessation that focuses on building general functional support, particularly self-esteem support, may be beneficial for smoking cessation in caregivers of children with asthma.