Think abstractly, smoke less: a brief construal-level intervention can promote self-control, leading to reduced cigarette consumption among current smokers.
Level 2 - randomized trial
Individual randomized laboratory experiment
PubMed 23279621 · doi:10.1111/add.12100
What was done
A single-factor between-subjects laboratory experiment evaluated 102 daily smokers from a community sample in Taiwan. Participants were assigned to high-level construal, low-level construal, or control conditions using a why/how paradigm regarding maintaining physical health. Self-control was evaluated using the Stroop task, and actual cigarette consumption was measured during an ostensible survey.
What was found
Participants in the high-level construal group smoked fewer cigarettes (mean = 1.3, 95% CI: 0.9 to 1.7) than those in the low-level construal group (mean = 2.6, 95% CI: 2.2 to 3.0; P < 0.01). Bootstrapping analysis indicated that self-control mediated this reduction (B = -1.14, 95% CI: -1.65 to -0.74, P < 0.01). The abstract did not report specific numerical values for the control group.
Why it matters
This study demonstrates that brief cognitive framing focused on high-level goals can acutely bolster self-control and reduce cigarette intake. Such mental priming could potentially be integrated into behavioral smoking cessation interventions.
Limits
The study tested only short-term cigarette consumption in an artificial laboratory environment with a modest sample size (n = 102). Long-term abstinence, real-world smoking behavior, and numerical findings for the baseline control condition were not reported in the abstract.