Smoking as subculture? Influence on Hispanic and non-Hispanic White women's attitudes toward smoking and obesity

Cultural stereotypes might help explain why smoking is less prevalent among Hispanic than non-Hispanic White women, whereas obesity is more prevalent. Hispanic (n = 130) and non-Hispanic White (n = 114) women rated their thoughts and feelings regarding a female smoker and an overweight woman. Ethnicity did not influence evaluations, but attitudes toward smokers were more positive among more acculturated Hispanic women, F(1, 66) = 9.9, p < .01. Less acculturated women evaluated an overweight woman more positively than a smoker, F(1, 28) = 5.65, p < .05; more acculturated women did the opposite, F(1, 36) = 5.92, p < .05. Smokers evaluated smokers more positively than overweight women, F(1, 86) = 40.8, p < .01; nonsmokers did the opposite, F(1, 138) = 7.7, p < .01. Personal body weight did not influence evaluations. Acculturation and smoking status appear to have a greater influence than ethnicity or weight status on women's attitudes toward smoking and weight.