The Interpretation of Non-Native Students from the Experience of Smoking at University (Case Study: Non-Native Students of the University of Isfahan)
Journal Title: Strategic Research on Social Problems in Iran - Year 2021, Vol 10, Issue 1
Abstract
Introduction: Smoking is one of the global health challenges and a risk factor for death, both in developed and developing countries. Smoking is the second leading risk factor for global disease burden, leading to more than six million deaths worldwide annually. It is noteworthy that many students have turned to smokeing and despite recognizing its harms, smoking among students is increasing. Because many smokers start their first cigarette at the university, university students should be monitored for their smoking behaviors to design tobacco prevention programs. The aim of this qualitative study was to investigate the semantic system of non-native smoker students in the experience of smoking at the university. Materials and Methods: The present study was conducted using the grounded theory qualitative research method. The grounded theory methodology (Glaser & Strauss, 1998; Charmaz, 2006) is a methodological approach in which data collection, analysis, and theory stand in a reciprocal relationship. Participants included 27 students (18-30 years old) who were selected by the purposeful sampling method. The authors conducted semi-structured interviews to collect the data. Data saturation criteria were used for deciding about the sample size, and the sampling process continued until the answers became repetitive and no new concept could be created. Before starting the interviews, the authors collected students’ consent forms. The participants became familiar with the research procedure through the explanation of the research purposes, questions, and methods. After each interview, the authors transcribed the interview talks and data analysis started from the first interview. For data analysis, the theoretical coding (Strause & Corbin, 1998) was utilized by three coding levels including open coding, axial coding, and selective coding. During the open coding, interview texts were reviewed and encoded line by line and a concept was assigned for the meaningful phrase of the interviewee talks. In the second phase of coding, axial coding, the constructed concepts were put together and were transformed into categories that were more abstract in comparison to primary concepts. At the third level of coding, categories were linked together and a core category emerged as the final category. The authors tried to achieve a level of credibility in research findings by continuous comparisons of participants’ statements and paying attention to their feedbacks regarding the analysis. Additionally, the authors checked the final concepts by the participants; thisconfirmed the constructed concepts and findings. Discussion of Results and Conclusions: Data analysis was conducted using theoretical coding in three stages of open, axial, and selective coding (Corbin & Strauss, 2008). During the coding process, 7 main categories were constructed. Non-native smoking students’ experiences and interpretations were described in categories including habitus and common action, weaknesses in university welfare services, the anomalies of student life, lesson pressure, risky relationships, weaknesses in parental communication skills, and presence in an unhealthy environment. Each of the discovered categories reflected the conditions of the students that caused them to turn to smoking. Finally, ‘accumulative dissatisfaction’ was emerged as the final category. This concept had two basic dimensions. The first one was the dissatisfaction formed in the students due to the unfavorable conditions in which they were due to leaving the family environment,entering the university environment and living away from the family. Another was the accumulation of such dissatisfaction within them. Living alone and away from the family and in a different environment made the students’ daily lives more difficult. Changes in the life of non-native students led to the formation of a new habitus in which most non-native students shared the same character and actions. Universities and specialists should pay attention to such situations especially by designing a social care system. The strong social security and social care system. Counseling in universities can reduce some negative consequences of smoking for students and reduce the number of smoking students.
Authors and Affiliations
Maryam Baharluoei PhD Candidate of Sociology, Yazd University, Yazd, Iran baharluoeimaryam@yahoo. com Milad Naseri PhD Candidate of Sociology, Yazd University, Yazd, Iran m. naseri@cfu. ac. ir Ali Rabbani Khorasghani * Professor, Department of Social Sciences, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran a. rabbani@ltr. ui. ac. ir
Keywords
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- EP ID EP704967
- DOI http://dx.doi.org/10.22108/srspi.2021.121920.1519
- Views 92
- Downloads 0
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