Objective: To examine the intention to quit waterpipe smoking among college students.
Participants: A total of 276 University of Houston students identified through an online survey administered in February 2011. Participants indicated they had smoked a waterpipe in the month prior to the survey.
Methods: Cross-sectional study. Questions included demographics, tobacco use, perceived risk of waterpipe smoking, and social acceptability. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine predictors of an intention to quit.
Results: Most of the sample participants (n = 227; 83%) reported that they had no intention to quit. Students believing that waterpipe smoking was harmful were more likely to have an intention to quit (odd ratio [OR] = 2.38, 95% confidence interval [CI; 1.05, 5.36]). Those who smoked for more than 60 minutes were less likely to have a desire to quit (OR = 0.29, 95% CI [0.12, 0.73]).
Conclusions: The low level of a desire to quit demonstrated underscores the urgent need to develop interventions that educate users about expected harms of continued use.