Harm Perceptions of Secondhand Aerosol Exposure and Opinions About Acceptability and ECIG Use Inside of Vehicles Among ECIG Users

Abstract

Significance: Limited research has examined electronic cigarette (ECIG) secondhand aerosol (SHA) exposure. Initial research shows ECIG SHA exposure may be associated with negative health effects, but many ECIG users associate little harm with SHA exposure and may be more likely to engage in ECIG use in indoor settings, such as inside of vehicles. This study’s purpose was to examine the association between harm perceptions of ECIG SHA and ECIG use inside of vehicles behaviors and perceptions. Methods: Current (past 30-day) adult ECIG users in the US (n=1002; mean age=32.8; 50.4% women) completed an online survey examining harm perceptions of ECIG SHA (“no harm”, “little harm”, “some harm”, “a lot of harm”), opinions about acceptability of ECIG use inside of vehicles in the presence of others(“always allowed” or “be allowed under some conditions”, “never be allowed”), and ECIG use behaviors inside of vehicles (“always”, “sometimes”, “rarely”, “never”). Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were conducted to examine associations between variables. Results: Most participants (78.3%) who owned a vehicle reported ECIG use inside their vehicle “almost always” or “sometimes.” Participants perceived ECIG SHA exposure was associated with “little harm” (34.6%) or “some harm” (36.5%), and few (8.6%) associated “a lot of harm.” Over three-quarters (79.2%) reported ECIG use inside vehicles when adults were present and 36.6% reported ECIG use when children were present. Most (89.5%) stated that ECIG use should be allowed in the presence of other adults and 39.9% reported ECIG use should be allowed with children present. ECIG users who associated no or little harm with ECIG SHA exposure were more likely to report ECIG use inside of vehicles, ECIG use inside of vehicles when adults or children were present, and to perceive ECIG use inside of vehicles when adults or children were present was acceptable (ps<0.05). Conclusion: In this study, lower harm perception of ECIG SHA exposure was associated with increased ECIG use inside of vehicles. Future research should assess the impact of increasing harm perceptions of SHA on indoor ECIG use behaviors.