Young immigrant Latinas, compared with non-Latina white adolescents, are at greater risk to begin smoking and experimenting with other substances; yet little is known about the contributing factors that place them at this risk. To identify psychosocial predictors of smoking, a sample of 447 self-identified Latinas and 160 non-Latina white adolescents aged 13-18 years from San Francisco and San Mateo counties, Calif., answered a 30-minute face-to-face questionnaire. Significant predictors of smoking status for the entire sample were (a) self-efficacy to avoid smoking (odds ratio [OR] = 10; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 5-21; P < .001), (b) intention to smoke even if it is risky (OR = 10; 95% CI = 5-20; P < .001), (c) usage of free time (OR = 4; 95% CI = 2-8; P < .001), (d) personal approval of others' smoking (OR = 3; 95% CI = 1-5; P < .01), and (e) peer's smoking approval (OR = 2; 95% CI = 1-4; P < .05). The majority of the adolescent smokers in this study reported low levels of self-efficacy for avoiding smoking and believed that they would continue to smoke even if it was risky. They spent more of their free time with friends or alone, reported higher personal approval of significant others' smoking, and reported stronger perceived peer's approval of smoking than nonsmokers. For non-Latina whites, personal approval of others' smoking and having serious problems were associated with smoking.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

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Social Values South and Central America social psychology Latin America psychological aspect Caucasian human statistics child behavior ethnology Hispanic Americans United States Humans family Hispanic attitude California smoking Adolescent Acculturation female questionnaire cultural factor peer group prevalence women's health high risk behavior Article Risk-Taking Adolescent Behavior Questionnaires prediction and forecasting migration Predictive Value of Tests European Continental Ancestry Group Emigration and Immigration social behavior