Description:

The CAS study investigated the relationships between national tobacco policies, school smoking policies and adolescent smoking in eight European countries: Austria, French-speaking Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Norway, Scotland and Wales. The CAS survey of smoking habits, beliefs and attitudes among 15-year-old pupils, was included as an additional section in the 1997/98 HBSC survey in the eight CAS participating countries. Two additional surveys, one of secondary school staff, and one of national policies relating to smoking in schools, were undertaken by the CAS project, and were not part of the larger HBSC study.

The CAS study examined national and school policies on the control of smoking and exposure of pupils to smoking. It also explored the hypothesis that being exposed to smoking of others in the school environment and other contexts may influence adolescents' own attitudes to smoking.

Some key findings:

• Students were less likely to be exposed to teachers smoking in school in countries with comprehensive national smoking policies.
• In schools that had smoke-free policies, the probability that students reported being exposed to teachers smoking indoors was much lower than for those in non-smoke-free schools.
• In schools, the prevalence of smoking among students was related to the strength and enforcement of policies to control smoking, after having adjusted for student-level characteristics that might contribute to smoking rates.
• Good teacher support for students was correlated with lower smoking rates in students, therefore, smoke-free school policies are likely to work better in supportive school environments.
• In some countries, very restrictive national policies on indoor smoking at school can push teacher smoking outdoors, resulting in the negative and unforeseen side effect of making smoking more visible to students.
• The main recommendation from the CAS study is to aim for smoke-free schools and support this aim with comprehensive national tobacco control policies.

Publications

Journal articles
On-line articles
International Reports
National Reports
CAS Fact Sheets

Journal articles:

Wiium N and Wold B (2006) Family and school influences on adolescent smoking behaviour. Health Education, 106 (6): 465 - 479 DOI: 10.1108/09654280610711415

Wiium N, Torsheim T and Wold B (2006) Normative processes and adolescents’ smoking behaviour in Norway: A multilevel analysis. Social Science & Medicine, 62 (7): 1810-1818

Wold B, Currie C, Roberts C, Aaro LE (2004) National legislation on school smoking restriction in eight European countries. Health Promotion International; 19: 482 - 488.

Wold B, Torsheim T, Currie C and Roberts C (2004) National and school policies on restrictions of teacher smoking: a multilevel analysis of student exposure to teacher smoking in seven European countries. Health Education Research,
19 (3): 217-226.

Griesbach D, Amos A, and Currie C. (2003) Adolescent smoking and family structure in Europe. Social Science and Medicine, 56: 41-521.

Griesbach D, Inchley J, Currie C. More than words? (2002) The status and impact of smoking policies in Scottish schools. Health Promotion International, 17 (1): 31- 41.

Poulsen LH, Osler M, Roberts C, Due P, Damsgaard MT, Holstein BE. (2002) Exposure to teachers smoking and adolescent smoking behaviour: analysis of cross sectional data from Denmark. Tobacco Control, 11 (3): 246-51.

Rasmussen M, Damsgaard MT, Due P, Holstein BE. (2002)Boys and girls smoking within the Danish elementary school classes: a group-level analysis. Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, 30: 62-9.

On-line articles:
Dür, W. (2002): Junge RaucherInnen: Was können Staat, Schule und Familie tun?, Zeitung der Universität Wien - online, 19. Februar 2002. www.univie.ac.at/dieuniversitaet/

International Reports (all available from the HBSC International Coordinating Centre):
Kannas L & Schmidt B. The Control of Adolescent Smoking (CAS) study (2001). Policy implications and recommendations for a smoke free school. Department of Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä.

Roberts C. (2000) Control of Adolescent Smoking (the CAS study) 1997/1998: Technical Report on the staff survey in eight European countries. Research and Evaluation Branch, Health Promotion Division, National Assembly for Wales.

Wold B, Holstein B, Griesbach D, Currie C. (2000) National policies on restriction of smoking at school in eight European countries. Research Unit in Health & Behavioural Change, University of Edinburgh.

Wold B, Currie C, Lund M. (2000). Control of Adolescent Smoking (The CAS study) 1997/1998. Technical report on surveys of 15 year-olds in nine European countries. Research Centre for Health Promotion, University of Bergen.

National Reports:
Griesbach D & Currie C. (2001) Health Behaviours of Scottish Schoolchildren: Report 7: Control of Adolescent Smoking in Scotland. Child and Adolescent Health Research Unit, University of Edinburgh.

Dür, W., Grossmann, W., Bauer, M. (2002): Ansatzpunkte für die Raucherprävention bei 15-jährigen Schülerinnen und Schülern auf nationaler und schulischer Ebene, Wiener Zeitschrift für Suchtforschung, Jg. 25, 2002, Nr. 3.

CAS Fact Sheets:
Griesbach D and Currie C. (2000) CAS Fact Sheet 1: News from the International Study: Control of Adolescent Smoking. Comparing national policies on smoking in eight European counties. Child and Adolescent Health Research Unit (CAHRU), University of Edinburgh. Download [PDF format - 147KB]

Griesbach D and Currie C. (2000) CAS Fact Sheet 2: News from the International Study: Control of Adolescent Smoking. Adolescent smoking trends and intentions to smoke in eight European countries. Child and Adolescent Health Research Unit (CAHRU), University of Edinburgh. Download [PDF format - 132KB]

Griesbach D and Currie C. (2000) CAS Fact Sheet 3: News from the International Study: Control of Adolescent Smoking. Smoking in Scottish schools. Child and Adolescent Health Research Unit (CAHRU), University of Edinburgh.
Download [PDF format - 142KB]

Griesbach D and Currie C. (2000) CAS Fact Sheet 4: News from the International Study: Smoking and other health related behaviours and health indicators in Scottish adolescents. Child and Adolescent Health Research Unit (CAHRU), University of Edinburgh. Download [PDF format - 156KB]

Griesbach D and Currie C. (2000) CAS Fact Sheet 5: News from the International Study: Smoking, school achievement and educational aspirations among Scottish adolescents. Child and Adolescent Health Research Unit (CAHRU), University of Edinburgh. Download [PDF format - 146KB]

Griesbach D and Currie C. (2000) CAS Fact Sheet 6: News from the International Study: Parental influences on smoking among Scottish adolescents. Child and Adolescent Health Research Unit (CAHRU), University of Edinburgh.
Download [PDF format - 144KB]