Advances in Tobacco Research: Psychometric Evaluation of Vaping Expectancies

Strategic Insights -

A recent study published in Nicotine & Tobacco Research has made significant strides in understanding the psychometric properties of the Short-Form Vaping Consequences Questionnaire (SF-VCQ) among high school adolescents. The SF-VCQ is an expectancy measure previously validated with adults, and this study aimed to evaluate its psychometric properties in a sample of 1753 high school adolescents. The results of the study revealed excellent internal reliability, scalar measurement invariance, and construct, convergent, and concurrent validity of the SF-VCQ in samples of never, lifetime, and past-month adolescent e-cigarette users.

Key Takeaways:

  • The study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Short-Form Vaping Consequences Questionnaire (SF-VCQ) in a sample of 1753 high school adolescents.
  • The SF-VCQ evidenced excellent internal reliability, with a mean alpha of 0.94 across all subscales.
  • The four-factor structure of the SF-VCQ was confirmed, and the subscales were sensitive to differences based on sex, race, vaping susceptibility among never users, and lifetime and past-month vaping status.
  • The study found that students who vaped in the past-month held weaker expectancies for negative consequences but stronger expectancies for positive reinforcement, negative reinforcement, and appetite/weight control compared to lifetime vapers.
  • The SF-VCQ showed convergent validity when used in subsamples of lifetime and past-month vapers, and evidence for concurrent validity was observed for all samples after accounting for covariates.
  • The study concluded that challenging positive expectancies may be a valuable addition to prevention and intervention efforts to reduce youth vaping.

Statistics:

  • The sample consisted of 1753 high school adolescents, with 51.6% female, 15.56 years old on average, and 46.6% non-Hispanic white.
  • The study found that 26.9% of participants reported lifetime but no past-30-day vaping, and 12.6% reported past-30-day vaping.
  • The SF-VCQ showed excellent internal reliability, with a mean alpha of 0.94 across all subscales.
  • The study found that 34.6% of participants reported weaker expectancies for negative consequences, while 28.6% reported stronger expectancies for positive reinforcement.

Sources:

  • Psychometric Evaluation of the Short-form Vaping Consequences Questionnaire for Use With High School Adolescents Who Use and Do Not Use E-cigarettes. Nicotine & Tobacco Research, 2021.
  • Yale University School of Medicine. (2022). New Findings from Yale University School of Medicine Describe Advances in Tobacco Research (Psychometric Evaluation of the Short-form Vaping Consequences Questionnaire for Use With High School Adolescents Who Use and Do Not Use E-cigarettes). Agriculture Week. April 7, 2022; p 273.
  • Oxford University Press. (n.d.). Nicotine & Tobacco Research. Retrieved from ntr.oxfordjournals.org
  • Meghan E. Morean, Yale University School of Medicine, Dept. of Psychiatry, 34 Pk St, New Haven, CT 06519, United States. (n.d.). Psychometric Evaluation of the Short-form Vaping Consequences Questionnaire for Use With High School Adolescents Who Use and Do Not Use E-cigarettes.