Stages of readiness to quit smoking: Population prevalence and correlates.

Examined the population prevalence and correlates of stages in smokers' readiness to quit, using data from 1,048 smokers recruited in a self-weighting, multistage, systematic clustered area sample. Smokers in the precontemplation stage (PCTS) comprised 24.1% of the sample, smokers in the contemplation stage (CTS) comprised 47.2%, and smokers in the preparation stage (PS) comprised 28.7%. The 5 significant independent predictors of being in the PCTS (vs the CTS) were (1) having a higher confidence of quitting, (2) seeing fewer health risks associated with smoking, (3) not having made an attempt to quit, (4) seeing quitting as more difficult, and (5) smoking 25 or more cigarettes a day. The 2 significant independent predictors of being in the CTS (vs the PS) were (1) having lower confidence of quitting and (2) not having tried to quit. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)