Session: E-Cigarettes: Risk and Protective Factors, Initiation of Cigarette Use, and Intergenerational Transmission (Society for Prevention Research 27th Annual Meeting)

E-cigarette use is now common and increasing among both adults and adolescents, yet much remains unknown about their effect on smoking initiation, in particular whether e-cigarette use leads to regular tobacco use. Whether the risk and protective factors for e-cigarette use are the same as for tobacco cigarettes has been under-studied – a crucial gap for assessing the targets for preventive interventions. Little is also known about the consequences of parental e-cigarette use on child e-cigarette and other substance use. Prior research would suggest that, like other substance use, parent e-cigarette use would pose a risk for child use, yet to date this has not been examined. The current panel will examine each of these questions using data from three longitudinal studies. Paper 1 draws on data from the Seattle Social Development Study (SSDP), a longitudinal panel of participants followed from age 10 to 39. This paper examined the risk and protective factors that predict e-cigarette use, compared to those that predict the use of tobacco cigarettes. Results suggest that some risk (e.g., prior smoking, being around others who smoke) and protective (e.g., exercise) factors were similarly associated with both e-cigarette and cigarette use. However, whereas having pro-tobacco norms was a robust risk factor cigarette use, surprisingly, there was no relationship between norms and e-cigarette use. Paper 2 used data from the Community Youth Development Study (CYDS), a sample of youth in 12 rural communities across 7 states followed from ages 10 to 23. Paper 2 examined the interplay between smoking and e-cigarette use between ages 19 and 23 among previous nonsmokers, regular smokers, and occasional smokers, and examined whether e-cigarette use predicts increased use of cigarettes. Preliminary findings suggest that most of e-cigarette users are current or former smokers; only 3% of nonsmokers used e-cigarettes by age 23. Dual use with cigarettes was the most common pattern of e-cigarette use. E-cigarette use did predict an increase in cigarette use, after accounting for previous smoking. Paper 3 used data from the SSDP Intergenerational Study to explore the impact of parents’ e-cigarette use on child e-cigarette and cigarette use, other substance use, and norms. Analyses show similar rates of e-cigarette use among parents and children (~24%). Parent use of conventional cigarettes predicted greater odds of e-cigarette, cigarette, and marijuana use among children; parental use of e-cigarettes did not appear to confer additional or unique risk. Discussion will focus on public health implications for e-cigarette use control and regulation as well as on whether existing tobacco interventions will be effective at preventing e-cigarettes use.