Wednesday, July 09, 2008

If She Smokes She Pokes - Pobability Study

We have all heard the term, "If she smokes she pokes" But how do we know if it is true?

The study I would like to do is along the same lines as this. If a person engages in one type of risky behavior are they more or less likely to engage in another.

For example if a person smokes are the more or less likely to use condoms when having sex?

How do I study this? And I know smoking and other risk factors are not directly correlated but by-products of something else but I just thought it would be an interesting endeavor.

All thoughts comments and methods will be considered for this paper.

7 comments:

Rocketstar said...

It's true, it's about risk taking.

Anonymous said...

Well, you will have to thoroughly cover in your assumptions that smoking stems from "risky" behavior and not from something else, like propensity for chemical dependency. I do think this study is almost impossible to do, due to the lack of controls. For example, presence or absence of alcohol. For methods, you'll have to base it on self-reporting, and it will take at least a couple years to amass the number of lays to make non-condom activity statistically valid (at least in normal population).

Just a hypothesis of my own--I will guess that the perception of cigarette smoking as being "risky" is specific to an age group, and you will have better luck testing that group--18-24. Plus willing participants.

I would screen based on whether or not the person self-identifies as being a "smoker." My assumption is that at the point someone identifies as such, it is an addiction and less seen as risk-taking.

Muffy Willowbrook said...

Commander used to say that to me all the time when I smoked!

It made him sound like he was born in 1912.

I had never heard that phrase before. Nonetheless, good luck.

h*dizzle said...

the answer to your question is YES! and there are studies to back it up!im being boring today because i have my grad student/public health hat on =ppp

Anonymous said...

I'm going to start smoking.

JLee said...

Well get out there and do the field study and let us know! ha

Brutus said...

Never heard that one... So your premise, "We have all heard the term..." is wrong from the start.

I think you should look at women who jaywalk. Or how about those ner'do wells who eschew seat belts? I know at least a couple sassy wenches who delight in ripping those "Do not remove" labels off office chairs - how about them? I'm sworn to secrecy but there's at least one woman in the greater seven county metro area who not only bought but consumed a jug of milk that had passed its date of expiry. I bet she'd knock your socks off!