Illegal cigarettes sabotage national tobacco taxes and tobacco control strategies and have become a major concern for governments and international organizations. The large size of the illicit cigarette trade in southern Thailand provides an opportunity to examine the situation of illicit cigarette consumption. Qualitative results through content analysis are presented to reveal the situation of illicit cigarette consumption in Southern Thailand.
Conclusions: Illicit cigarette consumption remains a hidden public health problem, particularly among adolescents and young adults.
Introduction
Background
- Study background
- Background of the study site
Furthermore, to the south-west of Songkhla Province lies the Malaysian border as shown in Figure 1. It is divided into 13 sub-districts and Hat Yaicity is the largest metropolitan area in southern Thailand and the second largest metropolitan area. of Thailand after Bangkok. (the capital). An international railway station is located in Hat Yai and Hat Yai International Airport is the important airport in southern Thailand.24.
To the east lies the Gulf of Thailand and the western part of the district lies on the shore of Thale Noi, the northern part of Songkhla Lake.23.
Literature review
- Tobacco epidemic and its significant effect on health
- Burden of tobacco use in Thailand
- Illicit cigarette problem
- Price elasticity of demand for cigarettes
- Smoking behaviours and factors associated with illicit
- Snowballing technique
Price elasticity of demand measures the percentage change in quantity demanded as a result of a one percent change in price. Economists calculate the price elasticity of demand as the percentage change in quantity demanded divided by the percentage change in price. Cross price elasticity measures the effect of a change in the price of one good or service on the demand for another product.
The estimates of price elasticity of demand for cigarettes from developed countries range from -0.25 to -0.50.
Knowledge gap
Conceptual framework
Rationale of the study
Research questions
- Subsidiary objectives
Methodology
Research methodology
- Study design
- Study setting
- Study sample recruitment
- Study sample
- Sample size
- Operational definitions
- Study variables
- Data collection
- Data management and statistical analysis
The illegal nature of the illegal trade and consumption of cigarettes. turns illegal cigarette smokers into a hidden population. These three subjects, known as seeds, were then asked to invite other illegal and non-illegal cigarette smokers from their social network. An illegal cigarette smoker was defined as a current smoker who purchased and smoked at least three packs of illegal cigarettes in the past six months.
A smoker of illicit cigarettes was defined as a current smoker who had neither purchased nor smoked contraband cigarettes in his lifetime.
Ethical consideration
Collapsed and coded to create categories, and themes describing both manifest and latent meaning were generated manually. Field observation notes were also used to assist in discovery assessment in the data collection and analytical process.
Budget
Results
Recruitment of study subjects
Magnitude of cigarette consumption in the study areas
Among illicit cigarette smokers, the total number of hand-rolled cigarettes was higher than the number of illicit cigarettes in Sadao and Ranot.
Characteristics of illicit and non-illicit cigarette
Pattern and types of cigarette used among illicit and
Overall, the price of illicit cigarettes was inversely related to the total number of cigarettes smoked per day with a dose-response relationship (p<0.001). Among smokers who smoked lower priced illicit cigarettes, they had higher consumption of illicit and illicit cigarettes in a dose-response relationship (p<0.002, p<0.001). However, illegal cigarette prices above THB 35 (US$1.1) per pack caused smokers to purchase more hand-rolled cigarettes, as shown in Figure 11 .
Consumption of illicit and illicit cigarettes was stable across the entire price range of illicit cigarettes. The mean number of hand-rolled cigarettes tended to be higher at higher prices of illicit cigarettes, but this was not statistically significant (Figure 12). Among the three study areas, purchases and consumption of illicit cigarettes differed according to usual place of purchase, main reasons for smoking, price, duration of smoking, and smoking pattern (Table 8).
Friends were the most common source of information about illegal cigarettes and were the main person encouraging illegal cigarette consumption. However, favoring the taste of cigarettes was the most common reason reported in Sadao, where the average price of illegal cigarettes per pack was significantly higher than Ranot, but was no different in Hat Yai. Almost all illegal cigarette smokers (95.3%) smoked illegal cigarettes in combination with non-illegal cigarettes and hand-rolled cigarettes.
The number of non-illegal cigarettes was lowest in Sadao and was significantly different with Ranot but not Hat Yai. Friends were a source of information about places that sold illegal cigarettes and were the factor that caused the initial consumption of illegal cigarettes across all three areas, but this was not significantly different.
Factors associated with illicit cigarette consumption
Characteristics of illicit cigarettes and their packets
Qualitative results from in-depth interview
- Marketing and price strategies of illicit cigarettes
- Attitudes towards cigarette prices and tobacco taxation
- Attitude towards quality and use of illicit cigarettes
I5 "The saleswoman told me that she has cheap cigarettes for sale, she showed me the cigarette product, because it is almost three times cheaper than my legal tobacco product, so I bought a pack to try its taste first." I3 "Since I can't quit, it's good for me to have cheap cigarettes because it saves me money." I7 "I think many smokers use illegal cigarettes because the prices of Thai cigarettes are very high."
I15 "Besides smoking illegal cigarettes to save money, I also smoke hand-rolled cigarettes which allow me to save my money". Some complained that illegal cigarettes had more effects on their health, so they also used hand-rolled cigarettes to dilute the harmful effects of the illegal cigarette while still saving money. The taste of illegal cigarettes was no different from the taste of non-illegal cigarettes.
Reasons for replacing hand-rolled cigarettes with illegal cigarettes were lower cost and the convenience and time savings of not having to roll a cigarette. Smokers also felt that they give them a better image at work and provide them with more enjoyable social activities when they smoke illegal cigarettes than hand-rolled cigarettes. I2 "I don't know if it's a good cigarette or not, but I can smoke and I can save money".
I4 “I think its quality is lower than legal cigarettes, and when I am at home I usually smoke hand-rolled cigarettes, but when I work I usually smoke illegal cigarettes.” I10 “I can't roll cigarettes when I'm in my business or when I go out because my friends don't like their smell, so I smoke illegal cigarettes.”
Discussion and conclusion
Discussion
- Findings of the study
- Implications
- Strengths of the study
- Limitations of the study
However, the taste of illegal cigarettes was also found to be the main reason reported by most smokers in one study area. This may be due to the high consumption of the only brand of illegal cigarettes available in the border areas, where the price was high and often used together with other substances. Due to this co-use, the price of this specific brand of illegal cigarettes has become twice as high as that of other brands.
The qualitative study confirmed the results of a survey that the price of illegal cigarettes was the main reason for smokers to buy and smoke illegal cigarettes. Smoking illegal cigarettes was popular and socially acceptable by smokers in the study area. Buying illegal cigarettes is done in the same way as other goods in the community.
The market price of illegal cigarettes influences their demand more than the price of non-illegal cigarettes. There are a variety of illegal cigarettes on the market, such as brand and price, that smokers can purchase. However, the most notable feature of illegal cigarettes is their lower price compared to non-illegal cigarettes.
Illegal cigarette packs contain health warning labels, barcodes and look similar to other legal packs. Seizure of illegal cigarettes and fines are effective ways to control illegal cigarette consumption reported by subjects in this study and elsewhere,39 however the widespread involvement of social networks, high availability and easy access to illegal cigarettes are obstacles difficult to overcome.
Conclusion and recommendation
- Conclusions
- Recommendations
The clustering effect of the social network may influence the study findings, but this study used a cluster-adjusted complex survey analysis to adjust for the dependence of smokers in the same social networks. Evidence reviews of interventions to reduce tobacco use and exposure to environmental tobacco smoke1. Duke University–Southeast Asian Tobacco Control Alliance (SEATCA)–Tobacco Control Research and Knowledge Management Center (TRC)–Mahidol University 2010.
The Effect of a Large Cigarette Price Change on Smoking Behavior in California: A Zero Inflated Negative Binomial Model. Effect of restrictions on smoking at home, at school and in public places on teenage smoking: cross-sectional study. Patterns of smoking, risk factors for smoking, and smoking cessation among Vietnamese men in Massachusetts (United States).
The effect of price and smoking characteristics on the decision to smoke contraband cigarettes in Taiwan. The role of tobacco control policies in reducing smoking and deaths in a middle-income country: results from the Thailand simulation model SimSmoke. Purchase patterns and smoking behaviors following a large tobacco tax increase: a study of Chinese Americans living in New York City.
Was there significant tax evasion after California's 1999 50-cent per-pack cigarette tax increase?
Invitation to participate form
If you are asked to recruit new participants, you will receive 100 baht for your kind effort on every successful contact and interview. We will give you a personal number which will be used when completing these study forms. You have the right to either agree or disagree to participate in this study.
Whether you decide not to join this study will not affect any of your rights. Rassamee Sangthong, at Epidemiology Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Prince of Songkla University, Songkhla, Thailand 90110; phone number is on working days.
Consent form
The number of illegal cigarettes smoked per day in three areas was not significantly different. The purchase of illegal cigarettes was done in the same way as other goods in the community. The lower price of illegal cigarettes, compared to non-illegal cigarettes, is the strongest incentive for smokers to buy illegal cigarettes.
Mean and 95% CI of Number of Cigarettes Smoked Daily by Illegal Cigarette Price and Cigarette Type.
