Contact: Maridith Geuder
But 35 years after the first Surgeon General's report on the hazards of smoking, Americans are quite conflicted over the issue
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Almost four decades after the Surgeon General first announced that tobacco is a killer, millions of Americans still feel ambivalent about its use, restriction, control, or even whether youngsters should be shielded from it.
For example, while 64 percent of Americans say it is the government's responsibility to regulate tobacco, 53 percent believe the government should limit judgments against tobacco companies.
That's the finding of "Smoking in America," a national study released today by the Social Science Research Center at Mississippi State University.
In the first detailed analysis of tobacco habits and attitudes across key social groupings, social scientists Robert C. McMillen and Arthur G. Cosby measured how the anti-smoking public health movement has influenced Americans' daily lives.
Their conclusion: there's great contradiction in the public's views about tobacco.
"While there clearly has been a dramatic decline in the number of smokers since the U.S. Surgeon General in 1964 first announced the health risks of tobacco, the message has not consistently taken hold across the fabric of American society," said McMillen.
Through 1,503 in-depth telephone interviews, the Mississippi State research center focused on primary social institutions of family, schools, workplace, government, healthcare, recreation, and mass media.
"We wanted to create a snapshot of how deeply beliefs, habits and values about tobacco have penetrated some of society's fundamental building blocks," Cosby said.
This is the first national survey since 1998 state legal settlements--including one in Mississippi--against the tobacco industry.
"Smoking in America: 35 Years After the Surgeon General's Report" is available online at http://www.ssrc.msstate.edu/socialclimate. Other key findings:
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While more than 90 percent believe that smoking harms children, more than 20 percent allow smoking in the presence of youngsters. *
While 90 percent believe that students should not be allowed to smoke at school, more than 40 percent believe that teachers and staff should be allowed to smoke there. *
More than 96 percent reject claims that nicotine is not addictive, but more than 20 percent say that smoking either is not dangerous or is only slightly so. *
Almost 40 percent believe smoking should be allowed in restaurants; more than 60 percent believe it should be allowed in bars and taverns. *
Nearly 60 percent do not oppose tobacco advertisements in magazines. *
The Social Science Research Center, which this year marked its 50th anniversary at Mississippi State University, also has conducted national surveys on gaming in the United States and on national attitudes about drinking and driving.
For more information, contact Arthur G. Cosby or Robert C. McMillen at (662) 325-7127.