Self-efficacy and social support as predictors of smoking after a quit attempt

Abstract

The current study examined self-efficacy and social support as predictors of maintenance after an attempt to stop smoking. As in previous studies, self-efficacy at the end of treatment was a significant predictor of reported smoking during the follow-up period. At 3 months after treatment the prediction from self-efficacy was weaker than a prediction from the level of post-treatment smoking. However at 10 months self-efficacy was the strongest predictive variable assessed in the study. In contrast, social support for the quit attempt was not a significant predictor of maintenance at any stage. The results provided qualified support for the contention that self-efficacy can often be a more powerful predictor than previous performance attainments, especially under conditions of greater situational change.

Development of a Controlled Drinking Self‐Efficacy Scale and appraising its relation to alcohol dependence

“…It also is remarkable that a measure at pretreatment is able to predict follow-up outcomes since one might imagine that the changes in skills during treatment are likely to be especially pronounced. Measures of self-efficacy before a performance attempt are usually poor predictors in comparison to later measures (Kavanagh et al, 1993) because people often have little information on which to base their judgments before they have started an attempt to modify their behavior for the first time. The predictive power of a drinking self-efficacy measure that is taken before treatment suggests that people who seek treatment for alcohol abuse often have very good existing information on the situations they will find difficult in the future because they already have substantial evidence from past attempts to control their intake.…”

Correlates of Self-efficacy among Rural Smokers

“…Studies also have found higher self-efficacy to be related to greater social pressure to quit and social support for quitting (Sorensen, Emmons, Stoddard, Linnan, & Avrunin, 2002). Other research has found that social support does not predict self-efficacy; rather, the personal skill set of the smoker may be a more robust predictor of self-efficacy (Kavanagh, Pierce, Lo, & Shelley, 1993).…”

Grubs and Grasshoppers: Challenge‐Based Recreation and the Collective Efficacy of Families with At‐Risk Youth*

“…423–424). Prior research has demonstrated the effect of beliefs on behaviors in several areas, including overcoming phobias (Bandura, 1997), regulating diabetes (Hurley & Shea, 1992; Kavanagh, Gooley, & Wilson, 1993), recovering from heart disease (Ewart, 1992; Jensen, Banwart, Venhaus, Popkess‐Vawter, & Perkins, 1993), smoking cessation (deVries, Dijkstra, Grol, Seelen, & Kok, 1990; Kavanagh, Pierce, Lo, & Shelley, 1993), and treatment for alcoholism (Sitharthan & Kavanagh, 1990; Solomon & Annis, 1989). Consequently, interventions are more likely to be effective if they instill and strengthen efficacy perceptions rather than simply focus on changing behaviors.…”