Data from: Attitudes towards smoking restrictions and tobacco advertisement bans in Georgia

BACKGROUND: The level of public support for restrictions on tobacco use is an important element in a nation’s response to the need for tobacco control. However, no data have been available from Georgia on public opinion regarding smoking restrictions in public places, and on bans on tobacco advertisement, sponsorship and promotion. METHODS: 1,588 respondents aged 13-70 were interviewed at home about their level of agreement with eight possible smoking restrictions, used to calculate a dichotomous scale indicating high versus low level of agreement with restrictions. RESULTS: In all demographic segments, and among tobacco users, a majority of respondents indicated a high level of agreement with restrictions, ranging from a low of 51% in the 13-25 age group to a high of 98% in the 56-70 age group. Logistic regression with all demographic variables entered showed that agreement with restrictions rose significantly with age and was significantly higher among never smokers compared to daily smokers. Across all items, the average public support for smoking restrictions and tobacco advertisement bans was 84.9%. DISCUSSION: This study provides good quality evidence of a high level of public support in Georgia for strong smoking restrictions and the total ban of tobacco ads and sponsorship, even among daily smokers. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates a methodology for gathering national public opinion data to influence policies towards implementation of stronger smoking control measures. Therein lies the relevance of this study beyond the borders of Georgia.研究背景：公众对烟草使用限制的支持程度，是一国开展烟草防控工作的重要考量维度。然而此前格鲁吉亚（Georgia）尚未有针对公共场所吸烟限制、烟草广告、赞助及推广禁令的公众舆论相关数据。研究方法：对1588名年龄介于13至70岁的受访者开展家庭访谈，询问其对8项拟推行的吸烟限制措施的同意程度，并据此构建二分法量表，以区分受访者对限制措施的高、低同意水平。研究结果：在所有人口学细分群体以及烟草使用者中，多数受访者对烟草限制措施表示高度同意，同意率区间为13-25岁组的51%（最低值）至56-70岁组的98%（最高值）。纳入全部人口学变量的逻辑回归分析显示，对限制措施的同意程度随年龄增长显著升高，且从未吸烟者的同意水平显著高于每日吸烟者。所有调研条目显示，公众对吸烟限制及烟草广告禁令的平均支持率为84.9%。讨论：本研究提供了高质量证据，证明格鲁吉亚公众对严格的吸烟限制措施以及烟草广告与赞助全面禁令的支持度较高，即便在每日吸烟者群体中亦是如此。结论：本研究论证了一套用于收集全国公众舆论数据的方法框架，可用于推动政策制定并落实更严格的烟草管控措施。本研究的学术价值与现实意义亦超越了格鲁吉亚的国界范畴。