Negative Affect as Predictive of Cigarette Cessation in Dual Users of Cigarette/ENDS Over 12 Months

Dual use of cigarettes and electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) has grown increasingly common in adults, and many smokers use ENDS as a cigarette cessation aid. However, more research is needed to understand factors predicting which smokers who try ENDS will successfully quit cigarettes. Self-report data from a sample of adult cigarette smokers who recently began using ENDS (N = 364) was collected at baseline and 12-month time points in a longitudinal observational study. Self-reported cigarette use at 12 months, with abstinence defined as no smoking for the past 7 days, was the primary outcome variable in analyses. Baseline levels of depression symptoms (CES-D), anxiety symptoms (MASQ), and negative affect expectancies for smoking were entered as predictors, with baseline nicotine dependence for cigarettes (NDSS), motivation to quit, age, race/ethnicity, rate of cigarette smoking at baseline, and ENDS usage at baseline and 12 months as covariates. Interactions between CES-D, MASQ, and negative affect smoking expectancies were examined. No baseline mood variables (CES-D, MASQ, and negative affect smoking expectancies), were significantly associated with stopping smoking at 12 months. Negative affect expectancies for smoking did not moderate relationships between anxiety or depression and quitting. Baseline nicotine dependence for cigarettes, gender, and race/ethnicity significantly predicted the likelihood of cigarette cessation. Therefore, depression, anxiety, and negative affect smoking expectancies traditionally predictive of quitting success in conventional smoking did not predict cigarette cessation in a sample of non-treatment seeking dual users over and above nicotine dependence for cigarettes, gender, and race/ethnicity. Further investigation is needed to understand whether and how negative affect impacts cigarette cessation in dual users.