The World Values Survey (WVS) is an international research program devoted to the comparative scientific and academic study of social, political, religious, and cultural values of people in different regions of the world. One of the project main goals is to analyze values, norms, and beliefs in cross‐national and over‐time perspective and to assess how values stability (or change) influences the development of society. The main research instrument of the program is the representative social survey, which has been conducted every five years since 1981.
Aim
To describe levels of knowledge on the harmful effects of tobacco and public support for tobacco control measures in nine countries of the former Soviet Union, and to examine the characteristics associated with this knowledge and support.
Methods
Standardised cross-sectional, nationally representative surveys conducted in 2010/11 with 18000 men and women aged 18 years and above in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine. Respondents were asked a range of questions on their knowledge of the health effects of tobacco and their support for a variety of tobacco control measures. Descriptive analysis was conducted on levels of knowledge and support, along with multivariate logistic regression analysis of characteristics associated with overall knowledge and support scores.
Results
Large gaps exist in public understanding of the negative health effects of tobacco use, particularly in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Moldova. There are also extremely high levels of misunderstanding about the potential effects of ‘light’ cigarettes. However, there is popular support for tobacco control measures. Over three quarters of the respondents felt that their governments could be more effective in pursuing tobacco control. Higher levels of education, social capital (membership of an organisation) and being a former or never smoker were associated with higher knowledge on the health effects of tobacco and/or being more supportive of tobacco control measures.
Conclusions
Increasing public awareness of tobacco’s health effects is essential for informed decision-making by individuals and for further increasing public support for tobacco control measures.
High nicotine dependence among men was recorded in a number of study countries. Findings highlight the need for tobacco programmes to target early age smokers and less educated and poorer groups and suggest common ground for programmes seeking to reduce nicotine dependence, harmful alcohol use, and psychological distress.
a b s t r a c tBackground: Despite evidence that many people engage in solitary drinking and that it might be associated with negative consequences, to date, little research has focused on this form of drinking behaviour. This study examined the prevalence and factors associated with solitary drinking, and assessed whether it is linked with hazardous alcohol use among males in nine countries of the former Soviet Union (fSU). Methods: Data came from a cross-sectional population-based survey undertaken in 2010/11 in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine. Information was obtained on the frequency of solitary drinking among male regular drinkers (i.e., those consuming alcoholic drinks at least once a month), and on problem drinking (CAGE) and heavy episodic drinking (HED). Logistic regression analysis was used to examine associations between the variables. Results: The prevalence of occasional and frequent solitary drinking ranged from 8.4% (Georgia) to 42.4% (Azerbaijan), and 3.1% (Kazakhstan) to 8.2% (Armenia), respectively. Solitary drinking was associated with being older, divorced/widowed, living alone, having a bad/very bad household financial situation, lower levels of social support, and poor self-rated health. Occasional solitary drinking was linked to problem drinking and HED, while frequent solitary alcohol use was related to problem drinking. Conclusions: Solitary drinking is relatively common among male regular drinkers in the fSU and is linked to older age, social and economic disadvantage, and hazardous alcohol use.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.