This Article Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 1403494809103910v1 37/4/372    most recent References Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to Saved Citations Download to citation manager Request Permissions Request Reprints Add to My Marked Citations Citing Articles Citing Articles via Scopus Google Scholar Articles by Hassandra, M. Articles by Hatzigeorgiadis, A. PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Hassandra, M. Articles by Hatzigeorgiadis, A. Pubmed/NCBI databases Medline Plus Health Information Exercise for Children Exercise and Physical Fitness Healthy Living Smoking Smoking and Youth Social Bookmarking                         What's this?

I do not smoke — I exercise: A pilot study of a new educational resource for secondary education students

Department of Physical Education and Sports, University of Thessaly, Karies, 42100, Trikala, Greece, mxasad{at}pe.uth.gr

Yiannis Theodorakis

Department of Physical Education and Sports, University of Thessaly, Karies, 42100, Trikala, Greece

Evdoxia Kosmidou

Department of Physical Education and Sports, University of Thessaly, Karies, 42100, Trikala, Greece

Vassilis Grammatikopoulos

Department of Physical Education and Sports, University of Thessaly, Karies, 42100, Trikala, Greece

Antonis Hatzigeorgiadis

Department of Physical Education and Sports, University of Thessaly, Karies, 42100, Trikala, Greece

Aims: The aim of this study was to examine the applicability of a smoking prevention educational resource for secondary education students named `I do not smoke, I exercise'. The main focus of this program was the promotion of exercise as an alternative behaviour to smoking. Methods: The applicability of the intervention was assessed through questionnaires regarding: (a) attitudes towards smoking, (b) interest in information about smoking, and (c) knowledge about health consequences of smoking. Moreover, interviews were taken from the educators and the school principals. The questionnaires were completed from 210 students (101 boys and 109 girls) before the beginning, at the end of the program, and 12 months after the completion of the programme. One-way repeated measure ANOVA was performed to examine the differences between the pre-, post-, and the follow-up measures. Results: Results showed that the program succeeded in changing the students' attitudes, but the follow-up measures, 12 months later, showed that attitudes towards smoking and interest in information were relapsed to the pre-intervention levels. The only effect that was sustained was that for knowledge. The interviews also revealed positive comments about the program implementation and pointed some shortcomings. Conclusions: The program needs some modifications in order to overcome its weaknesses, have more lasting effects and to improve its applicability.

Key Words: Health promotion • intervention programme • prevention • smoking

This version was published on June 1, 2009

Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, Vol. 37, No. 4, 372-379 (2009)
DOI: 10.1177/1403494809103910


CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter    What's this?