The Prototypes of Tobacco Users Scale (POTUS) for Cigarette Smoking and E-Cigarette Use: Development and Validation

Eboneé N. Butler, Marissa G. Hall, May S. Chen, Jessica K. Pepper, Hart Blanton and Noel T. Brewer
Additional contact information
Eboneé N. Butler: Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599 USA
Marissa G. Hall: Department of Health Behavior, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
May S. Chen: Department of Health Behavior, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
Jessica K. Pepper: RTI International, Research Triangle Park, NC 27709, USA
Hart Blanton: Department of Communication, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
Noel T. Brewer: Department of Health Behavior, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 17, 1-12

Abstract: Endorsing prototypes of cigarette smokers predicts cigarette smoking, but less is known about prototypes of users of other tobacco products. Our study sought to establish the reliability and validity of a measure of prototypes of smokers and e-cigarette users. Participants were from a national survey of smokers and non-smokers ( n = 1414), a randomized clinical trial (RCT) of adult smokers ( n = 2149), and adolescent children of adults in the trial ( n = 112). The Prototypes of Tobacco Users Scale (POTUS) has four positive adjectives (cool, sexy, smart, and healthy) and four negative adjectives (disgusting, unattractive, immature, and inconsiderate) describing cigarette smokers and e-cigarette users. Confirmatory factor analyses identified a two-factor solution. The POTUS demonstrated strong internal consistency reliability in all three samples (median α = 0.85) and good test–retest reliability among adults in the RCT (median r = 0.61, 1–4 weeks follow-up). In the RCT, smokers more often agreed with negative prototypes for smokers than for e-cigarette users (mean = 2.03 vs. 1.67, p < 0.05); negative prototypes at baseline were also associated with more forgoing of cigarettes and making a quit attempt at the end of the trial (Week 4 follow-up). The POTUS may be useful to public health researchers seeking to design interventions that reduce tobacco initiation or cessation through the manipulation of tobacco user prototypes.

Keywords: prototypes; scale development; scale validation; tobacco; cigarettes; e-cigarettes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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