Attitudes about Cigarette Smoking, Perceived Consequences of Smoking, and Seeking Assistance with Cessation among Black and White Cigarette Smokers: A Qualitative Study

Table 2

Summary of qualitative results.

Topic	Questions	Basic themes	Group differences	Organizing themes
Consequences of smoking	(i) What are the reasons you smoke?; (ii) What are the benefits of smoking for you?; (iii) What are the effects of smoking for you?; (iv) What are the risks of smoking for you?	(i) Coping; (ii) Enjoyment; (iii) Dependence or habit; (iv) Social pressure/connectedness; (v) Taste; (vi) Relaxation; (vii) Financial burden; (viii) Smell and appearance; (ix) Health concerns	None	(i) The consequences of smoking cigarettes include benefits as well as risks
Craving and withdrawal	(i) What thoughts and/or feelings do you associate with cigarette cravings?; (ii) What do you do when it is impossible to smoke?; (iii) When you do not smoke for a while, how do you start thinking or feeling?	(i) Negative feelings and discomfort; (ii) Positive feelings; (iii) Impulsive action; (iv) Use of cognitive distraction; (v) Use of behavioral distraction; (vi) Belief they can ignore cravings/handle cravings without distractions	(i) More White than Black participants reported that they are able to ignore or control cravings without the use of distractions	(i) Craving and withdrawal generate approach and avoidance behaviors; The management of craving and withdrawal is a common experience
Smoking cessation	(i) When you think about quitting, how do you feel?; (ii) What challenges do you associate with quitting smoking?	(i) Positive feelings; (ii) Negative feelings; (iii) Ambivalence; (iv) Physical dependence; (v) No substitutes; (vi) Lack of interest in quitting	None	(i) Smoking cessation is characterized by significant cognitive dissonance
Help with smoking cessation	(i) How easy is it for you to find assistance with quitting smoking?; (ii) What type of assistance do you think would be effective?; (iii) If you were looking for more information on how to quit smoking, what would be the best way to get you that information?; (iv) What is preventing you from seeking assistance in quitting?; (v) There are a lot of different ways we can provide information on smoking cessation, for example, written materials, group discussion, and talking with your doctor. What do you think would suit you best?	(i) Finding assistance is easy; (ii) Finding assistance is difficult; (iii) Awareness of various types of assistance; (iv) No need for support; (v) Ambivalence about seeking help; (vi) Preference for written materials; (vii) Preference for speaking with a doctor; (viii) Preference for participating in group discussion	(i) More Black than White participants preferred written materials; (ii) More White than Black participants preferred speaking with a medical provider; (iii) More White participants preferred participating in group discussion	(i) Knowledge about where to seek help for smoking cessation is common; (ii) Individuals have strong preferences about what kind of help they prefer; (iii) Ambivalence about cessation prevents seeking help
Social support	(i) What kind of support would you need from your social environment to help you quit smoking?; (ii) What kind of help would you need from people in your life in order to quit?; (iii) How do relationships help or hurt your quit attempts?	(i) Need a smoke-free environment; (ii) Relationships hurt quit attempts; (iii) Relationships help quit attempts; (iv) Relationships neither hurt nor help quit attempts	(i) Black participants mostly reported that relationships neither hurt nor helped their quit attempts or helped their quit attempts, while White participants mostly reported that relationships hurt their quit attempts	(i) Social influences can be helpful or a barrier to smoking cessation