would not be interested in attending clinics based in hospitals or universities. The present
study examined the effect of worksite ban on smoking behaviour (both at work and
outside) and also examined the interrelationship between smoking and other
behaviours. The ban was introduced on 1 August 1989 at the New South Wales Ambu-
lance Service in Australia. This study is interesting because it included physiological
measures of smoking to identify any compensatory smoking.
Methodology
Subjects A screening question showed that 60 per cent of the employees were
current smokers (n = 47). Twenty-four subjects (15 males and 9 females) completed all
measures. They had an average age of 34 years, had smoked on average for 11 years and
smoked an average of 26 cigarettes a day.
Design The subjects completed a set of measures one week before the ban (time 1),
one week after (time 2), and six weeks after (time 3).
Measures At times 1, 2 and 3, the subjects were evaluated for cigarette and alcohol
consumption, demographic information (e.g. age), exhaled carbon monoxide and blood
cotinine. The subjects also completed daily record cards for five working days and two
non-working days, including measures of smoking, alcohol consumption, snack intake
and ratings of subjective discomfort.
Results
The results showed a reduction in self-reports of smoking in terms of number of
cigarettes smoked during a working day and the number smoked during working
hours at both the one-week and six-week follow-ups compared with baseline, indicating
that the smokers were smoking less following the ban. However, the cotinine levels
suggested that although there was an initial decrease at week one, by six weeks blood
cotinine was almost back to baseline levels suggesting that the smokers may have
been compensating for the ban by smoking more outside of work. The results
also showed increases in craving and stress following the ban; these lower levels of stress
were maintained, whereas craving gradually returned to baseline (supporting com-
pensatory smoking). The results showed no increases in snack intake or alcohol
consumption.
Conclusion
The self-report data from the study suggest that worksite bans may be an effective form
of public health intervention for decreasing smoking behaviour. However, the physio-
logical data suggests that simply introducing a no-smoking policy may not be sufficient
as smokers may show compensatory smoking.
SMOKING AND ALCOHOL USE 123