Racial/Ethnic and Nativity Patterns of U.S. Adolescent and Young Adult Smoking
Abstract
We document racial/ethnic and nativity differences in U. S. smoking patterns among adolescents and young adults using the 2006 Tobacco Use Supplement to the Current Population Survey (n = 44,202). Stratifying the sample by nativity status within five racial/ethnic groups (Asian American, Mexican-American, other Hispanic, non-Hispanic black, and non-Hispanic white), and further by sex and age, we compare self-reports of lifetime smoking across groups. U. S.-born non-Hispanic whites, particularly men, report smoking more than individuals in other racial/ethnic/nativity groups. Some groups of young women (e. g., foreign-born and U. S.-born Asian Americans, foreign-born and U. S.-born Mexican-Americans, and foreign-born blacks) report extremely low levels of smoking. Foreign-born females in all of the 25-34 year old racial/ethnic groups exhibit greater proportions of never smoking than their U. S.-born counterparts. Heavy/moderate and light/intermittent smoking is generally higher in the older age group among U. S.-born males and females, whereas smoking among the foreign-born of both sexes is low at younger ages and remains low at older ages. Taken together, these findings highlight the importance of considering both race/ethnicity and nativity in assessments of smoking patterns and in strategies to reduce overall U. S. smoking prevalence and smoking-attributable health disparities. © 2013 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht.
Publication Title
Population Research and Policy Review
Recommended Citation
Wade, B., Lariscy, J., & Hummer, R. (2013). Racial/Ethnic and Nativity Patterns of U.S. Adolescent and Young Adult Smoking. Population Research and Policy Review, 32 (3), 353-371. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11113-013-9275-8
