Relationship between Smoking Initiation and School Characteristics According to Grade Level among High School Students in Korea

Objectives: Students' life changes substantially as grade increases. It implies that risk factors that trigger students' smoking may not be consistent across grades. Most previous studies on student smoking have considered grade simply a control variable. This study examines which and to what extent risk factors are differently associated with smoking initiation according to grade level among high school students in Korea. Methods: Data from the Korean Youth Risk Behavior Web-based Survey (KYRBWS) conducted by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) in 2007 and 2008 were analyzed in this study. Results: Among boys, school location, school type and pocket money etc. significantly influence smoking initiation in the first grade than in any other grades, but the strength of the association decreased as grade increases except academic performance. Among girls, most independent variables were associated with smoking initiation in the second grade except school location, pocket money per week and academic performance. Conclusions: Our results suggested that the variables related smoking initiation in Korean high school students were notably different by grade and gender. These findings can serve as the basis of policy recommendations with regard to school efforts to prevent student smoking.