Scholz
Fakultäten » Philosophische Fakultät » Psychologisches Institut » Sozialpsychologie » Prof. Dr. Rainer Hornung » Scholz
Current research project
| Title / Titel | Dyadic and Individual Regulation to End Chronic Tobacco use (DIRECT) | ||||
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| Abstract (PDF, 14 KB) | |||||
| Original title / Originaltitel | Dyadische und Individuelle Regulationsprozesse bei der Entwöhnung von Chronischem Tabakgebrauch (DIRECT) | ||||
| Summary / Zusammenfassung | Theoretical background: Changing one’s behavior is associated not only with individual self-regulation, but also with social processes. Quitting smoking is an important change in health behavior that has been studied from both individual and social perspectives. There is a growing body of research focusing on positive and negative social exchanges and their impact on smok-ing cessation. Positive social exchanges include companionship (i.e., daily enjoyable interac-tions), positive social support (i.e., emotional and practical help with arising problems), and positive social control (i.e., trying to induce health behavior in one’s partner with positive rein-forcement of successful non-smoking behavior). In contrast, negative social exchanges comprise negative companionship (e.g., social exclusion / isolation), negative social support (e.g., nagging), and negative social control (e.g., punishment of undesired behavior). Positive and negative social exchanges are not two poles of one dimension but can co-occur; therefore, they can be conceptualized as two independent dimensions. The dynamics between positive and negative social exchanges and their association with suc-cessful health behavior change have not yet been systematically investigated. In order to carry out a systematic investigation of these dynamics, it is crucial to assess social exchanges on a daily basis, as they have been found to change quickly within the first weeks of smoking cessa-tion. Applying a diary method to collect daily assessments also reduces certain biases (e.g., recall bias) in self-report data. Furthermore, most studies examined only the perspective of one partner of the couple. The proposed project will be one of the first to take a dyadic view by as-sessing both partners of a dyad on a daily basis. Aim of the project: The aim of the proposed research project is the examination of the daily –short-term– dynamics of positive and negative social exchanges with smoking behavior and smoking cessation around a self-set quit date. Moreover, the project will also examine the longer-term dynamics of dyadic regulation and smoking cessation with follow-up assessments over the course of six months. Design: This project will apply a longitudinal research design with two phases: The first phase will be a daily diary phase with 31 diary days around a self-set quit date (10 days before and 21 days after quitting) and the second phase will be follow-up assessments at 1 month and 6 months after baseline assessment. Method: The sample will consist of 120 couples between 20 and 40 years of age with one partner smoking and willing to make a quit attempt during our study. Gender will be balanced. Both partners in the couple will complete all questionnaires. These questionnaires will assess both different social exchange indicators and individual self-regulatory constructs. Smoking behavior as the main outcome variable will be assessed both by self-report and objective measures (i.e., carbon monoxide of expired air). Significance of the planned research: Guidelines on smoking cessation emphasize the impor-tance of the social environment. They recommend providing smokers trying to quit with ade-quate support although there is very little systematic research on which social exchanges are helpful and how they facilitate smoking cessation. This research project promises to close this empirical gap and has the potential to enhance theory building in this area because dyadic exchanges in behavior change have not yet been investigated as systematically as proposed in the present project. Our research aims to provide such an investigation, significantly contribut-ing to knowledge on the interplay of individual and dyadic self-regulation in health behavior change and on the daily dynamics between dyadic exchanges and smoking behavior. Moreover, the longitudinal design will allow insights on longer-term associations of social exchanges and smoking cessation or risk for relapse. On the basis of the results of the present project, effective theory-based and evidence-based interventions to facilitate smoking cessation in couples can be developed. |
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| Keywords / Suchbegriffe | smoking cessation, dyadic regulation, social exchanges, couples | ||||
| Project leadership and contacts / Projektleitung und Kontakte |
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| Funding source(s) / Unterstützt durch |
SNF (Personen- und Projektförderung) |
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| In collaboration with / In Zusammenarbeit mit |
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| Duration of Project / Projektdauer | Nov 2009 to Nov 2012 |