Tobacco-Free Policy Compliance Behaviors among College Students: A Theory of Planned Behavior Perspective

The purpose of this study was to examine the theory of planned behavior (TPB) as a framework for understanding tobacco-free policy compliance behaviors. Undergraduate student smokers (n=479) on a college campus with a tobacco-free policy were randomly selected to report their tobacco-free compliance behaviors and respond to TPB items. A path analysis found all constructs of the TPB model to be significantly related to tobacco-free policy compliance behaviors. The results obtained from this study fill gaps in the mostly atheoretical literature regarding our understanding of tobacco-free policy compliance behaviors as well as extend our knowledge of the TPB. Implications for this study provide recommendations for universities, health organizations, and government agencies currently attempting to enforce compliance with a tobacco-free policy.