be important in moderating adolescent smoking behavior regardless of the parents’ smoking habits. However, since many parents are unable to tell their children not to smoke when they themselves smoke, adolescents will not feel any influential pressures against smoking and thus, the smoking rates might increase. Second, there is an apparent increase in permissiveness of parents. “Today, even more than in 1983, the dangers of cigarettes are documented by the scientific community, and accepted by parents and community leaders . . . [this leads] parents to feel the anti smoking message is clear and they no longer need to state the obvious to their youngsters” (Newman and Ward, 1989, p.153). As seen parents indeed play an integral role with regards to influencing their children, especially cigarette smoking. Males (1995) reviewed the results of the Los Angeles Survey that was conducted in 1993 and found that parental smoking was a significant indicator for adolescent smoking. The study started by administering a baseline survey on smoking to students in health classes at four northern Los Angeles junior high schools. The survey asked questions regarding the students’ basic demographic information; smoking habits, if any; parental smoking habits. A total of 407 students was surveyed. Only 320 students then immediately heard an anti smoking presentation that included graphic details of health risks involved with smoking. Immediately following the presentations, the students were re-administered the survey. The other 90 students were not shown the presentation, but were retested. Results of the baseline study concluded that adolescents whose parents smoked, where twice as likely to have tried cigarettes, three times more likely to have smoked within the past week, and two and one half time more likely to indicate future intent to smoke. Furthermore, they were four times more likely to be smoking weekly by th...
