Going smoke-free: University staff and students' qualitative views about smoking on campus during the implementation of a smoke-free policy.

View/ Open
File version
Version of Record (VoR)
Author(s)
Sendall, Marguerite C
Le Lievre, Chantal
McCosker, Laura K
Brewis, Lauren
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2020
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
BACKGROUND: Despite many Australian universities introducing smoke-free policies on campus, there is little information about staff and students understanding of smoking on campus in the context of the implementation of a smoke-free policy. OBJECTIVE: This research explores the qualitative views of university staff and students about smoking on campus during the implementation of a smoke-free policy. METHODS: In 2016, an electronic survey was distributed to all current staff and students of a large university in Queensland, Australia during the implementation of a smoke-free policy. The survey consisted of multiple-choice ...
View more >BACKGROUND: Despite many Australian universities introducing smoke-free policies on campus, there is little information about staff and students understanding of smoking on campus in the context of the implementation of a smoke-free policy. OBJECTIVE: This research explores the qualitative views of university staff and students about smoking on campus during the implementation of a smoke-free policy. METHODS: In 2016, an electronic survey was distributed to all current staff and students of a large university in Queensland, Australia during the implementation of a smoke-free policy. The survey consisted of multiple-choice questions about demographics, tobacco use, attitudes towards smoking, awareness of and attitudes towards the policy, and intentions to quit smoking. The final question asked for a short, open-ended response: "Would you like to comment on the issue of smoking on QUT* campuses?" This question was extracted from the survey and analysed using inductive thematic analysis. This paper reports the findings from this question. *Queensland University of Technology. RESULTS: The survey was completed by 641 staff and students. There were 351 responses to the final question. Five inductive themes emerged about smoking on campus during the implementation of a smoke-free policy: 1) the watering down of the policy, if it is not enforced, 2) the creation of hot spots on campus boundaries affecting those who pass by, 3) concern, especially by those who don't smoke, about the impact on smokers emotional health and welfare, 4) disagreement about the value of designated smoking areas and 5) suggestions about how to better implement the policy. CONCLUSION: Overall, participants views about smoking on campus during the implementation of a smoke free policy suggest broad agreement but reflect concerns about enforcement, boundaries, non-smokers and designated areas. Consistent and systematic processes for implementation, maintenance and enforcement of policy goals, and cessation support, is needed to create a non-smoking culture on university campuses.
View less >
View more >BACKGROUND: Despite many Australian universities introducing smoke-free policies on campus, there is little information about staff and students understanding of smoking on campus in the context of the implementation of a smoke-free policy. OBJECTIVE: This research explores the qualitative views of university staff and students about smoking on campus during the implementation of a smoke-free policy. METHODS: In 2016, an electronic survey was distributed to all current staff and students of a large university in Queensland, Australia during the implementation of a smoke-free policy. The survey consisted of multiple-choice questions about demographics, tobacco use, attitudes towards smoking, awareness of and attitudes towards the policy, and intentions to quit smoking. The final question asked for a short, open-ended response: "Would you like to comment on the issue of smoking on QUT* campuses?" This question was extracted from the survey and analysed using inductive thematic analysis. This paper reports the findings from this question. *Queensland University of Technology. RESULTS: The survey was completed by 641 staff and students. There were 351 responses to the final question. Five inductive themes emerged about smoking on campus during the implementation of a smoke-free policy: 1) the watering down of the policy, if it is not enforced, 2) the creation of hot spots on campus boundaries affecting those who pass by, 3) concern, especially by those who don't smoke, about the impact on smokers emotional health and welfare, 4) disagreement about the value of designated smoking areas and 5) suggestions about how to better implement the policy. CONCLUSION: Overall, participants views about smoking on campus during the implementation of a smoke free policy suggest broad agreement but reflect concerns about enforcement, boundaries, non-smokers and designated areas. Consistent and systematic processes for implementation, maintenance and enforcement of policy goals, and cessation support, is needed to create a non-smoking culture on university campuses.
View less >
Journal Title
PLoS One
Volume
15
Issue
8
Copyright Statement
© 2020 Sendall et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
Subject
Health services and systems
Public health