Investigation on smoking behaviors and smoking-related knowledge and attitude among secondary school teachers

  Objective   To realize smoking behaviors and their relationship with smoking related knowedge and attitude among secondary school teachers.

  Methods   All secondary school teachers in Huang pu district of Guangzhou were inquired with a self administered questionnaire about socio-demographic characteristics, smoking behaviors, smoking related health knowledge and attitude.

  Results   Of 700 teachers surveyed, 59.1% never smoked, 18.1% evertried to smoke, 1.86% ever smoked daily, and 10.1% smoked currently.The total mean of smoking related health know ledge was 8.53(maximum= 14);the mean of knowledge about diseases caused by smoking(maximum=10)and harmful components in cigarette(maximum=4)was 5.73 and 2.40, respectively.The mean of smoking related attitude was 33.21(maximum=45)for sociality effect of smoking; 21.76 for smoking effects on appearance(maximum=25);20.96 for teachers and health care workers model role(max imum=25);9.20 for harmful effects of smoking on health(maximum=10)and 26.73 for measures for controlling smoking(maximum=30).No significant difference was obser ved on the mean of smoking related health know ledge among the secondary school teachers with different smoking behaviors.By contrats, significant differences were obtained on the means of smoking related at titude among the secondary school teachers with different smo king behaviors.

  Conclusion   The teachers smoking behaviors were significantly associated with the smoking related attitudes, but not with the smoking related health knowledge.