{"id":{"repo_id":"ohiolink","oai_identifier":"oai:etd.ohiolink.edu:toledo1363093640"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/ohiolink/oai:etd.ohiolink.edu:toledo1363093640","repository":{"repo_id":"ohiolink","name":"OhioLINK","base_url":"https://etd.ohiolink.edu/acprod/odb_etd/ws/oai/oai"},"display":{"title":"Perceptions of University and College Presidents Regarding Tobacco-Free Campus Policies","abstract":"The purpose of this study was to examine perceptions of college and university presidents with regard to tobacco-free campus policies. The specific aims of this investigation involved determining if presidents supported such policies, what barriers and benefits they perceived to implementing a tobacco-free campus policy, who presidents felt should have a role in establishing a policy, and what activities might help initiate a tobacco-free campus policy. A cross-sectional research design was utilized with randomly selected presidents from four-year higher education institutions. A total of 405 completed surveys were returned for a response rate of 51% (405/790).The majority of respondents were presidents or chancellors (78%). Additional characteristics included being white (88%), male (77%), a non-smoker (74%), and 61 years of age or younger (52%), with six or less years of experience at their current institution (54%). A majority (53%) of respondents indicated their institution was either in the Action or Maintenance stage with the Stages of Change theory. The most commonly selected tobacco prevention initiative presidents’ were taking included appointing a campus wide task force addressing tobacco that was composed of administrators, faculty, staff and students (39%) followed by ensuring resources were budgeted to address tobacco related issues on campus (34%). The vast majority of presidents (90%) indicated they agreed or strongly agreed that advocacy by campus groups is necessary to establish a tobacco-free campus policy.Overall, the most commonly identified support barrier was “lack of a point person to champion the cause,” with 37% of respondents selecting this as either a moderate or major barrier to implementing a tobacco-free campus policy at their institution. The most commonly identified institutional barrier selected was “enforcement issues” (68%). In examining benefits presidents’ perceived if a policy was established on their campus, two items were most frequently selected: “minimizes secondhand smoke exposure” (81%) and “reduces prevalence of tobacco on campus” (81%).Differences emerged between institutions with a policy compared to those without an established policy. Specifically, presidents at institutions with a tobacco-free campus policy were over two times more likely to believe advocacy by campus groups was necessary to establish a policy (OR = 2.44; 95% CI 1.34 – 4.48), five times more likely to indicate less support barriers (OR = 5.25; 95% CI 3.32 – 8.32), and five times more likely to select less institutional barriers (OR = 4.80; 95% CI 2.97 – 7.77). Perceived benefits to establishing a policy did not differ by policy type.Presidents most commonly identified themselves (86%) as having a moderate or major role in establishing a tobacco-free campus policy followed by student affairs (77%) and study body (77%). When presidents were asked to determine how likely preselected activities may be in initiating a tobacco-free campus policy, the most commonly selected response dealt with creating drafts of potential policies for review (80%) and designating a committee for this task (79%).Results are encouraging for tobacco-free advocates pursuing policies on college campuses. Advocacy appears to be a necessary action in order to establish a policy and advocates would likely benefit from focusing on solutions to perceived barriers as opposed to educating on the benefits of such policies.","abstract_html":"The purpose of this study was to examine perceptions of college and university presidents with regard to tobacco-free campus policies. The specific aims of this investigation involved determining if presidents supported such policies, what barriers and benefits they perceived to implementing a tobacco-free campus policy, who presidents felt should have a role in establishing a policy, and what activities might help initiate a tobacco-free campus policy. A cross-sectional research design was utilized with randomly selected presidents from four-year higher education institutions. A total of 405 completed surveys were returned for a response rate of 51% (405/790).The majority of respondents were presidents or chancellors (78%). Additional characteristics included being white (88%), male (77%), a non-smoker (74%), and 61 years of age or younger (52%), with six or less years of experience at their current institution (54%). A majority (53%) of respondents indicated their institution was either in the Action or Maintenance stage with the Stages of Change theory. The most commonly selected tobacco prevention initiative presidents’ were taking included appointing a campus wide task force addressing tobacco that was composed of administrators, faculty, staff and students (39%) followed by ensuring resources were budgeted to address tobacco related issues on campus (34%). The vast majority of presidents (90%) indicated they agreed or strongly agreed that advocacy by campus groups is necessary to establish a tobacco-free campus policy.Overall, the most commonly identified support barrier was “lack of a point person to champion the cause,” with 37% of respondents selecting this as either a moderate or major barrier to implementing a tobacco-free campus policy at their institution. The most commonly identified institutional barrier selected was “enforcement issues” (68%). In examining benefits presidents’ perceived if a policy was established on their campus, two items were most frequently selected: “minimizes secondhand smoke exposure” (81%) and “reduces prevalence of tobacco on campus” (81%).Differences emerged between institutions with a policy compared to those without an established policy. Specifically, presidents at institutions with a tobacco-free campus policy were over two times more likely to believe advocacy by campus groups was necessary to establish a policy (OR = 2.44; 95% CI 1.34 – 4.48), five times more likely to indicate less support barriers (OR = 5.25; 95% CI 3.32 – 8.32), and five times more likely to select less institutional barriers (OR = 4.80; 95% CI 2.97 – 7.77). Perceived benefits to establishing a policy did not differ by policy type.Presidents most commonly identified themselves (86%) as having a moderate or major role in establishing a tobacco-free campus policy followed by student affairs (77%) and study body (77%). When presidents were asked to determine how likely preselected activities may be in initiating a tobacco-free campus policy, the most commonly selected response dealt with creating drafts of potential policies for review (80%) and designating a committee for this task (79%).Results are encouraging for tobacco-free advocates pursuing policies on college campuses. Advocacy appears to be a necessary action in order to establish a policy and advocates would likely benefit from focusing on solutions to perceived barriers as opposed to educating on the benefits of such policies.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Reindl, Diana M."],"institution":"University of Toledo","degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy","degree_level":"doctoral","degree_discipline":"Health Education","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Glassman, Tavis"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2013,"date_issued":"2013-08-21","date_published":"2013-08-21","updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:36:39Z","subjects":["Health Education","Tobacco-Free","College","University","President"],"languages":["English"],"rights":["unrestricted","This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: some rights reserved. It is licensed for use under a Creative Commons license. Specific terms and permissions are available from this document's record in the OhioLINK ETD Center."],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1363093640","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Glassman, Tavis"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Reindl, Diana M."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2013-08-21"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["University of Toledo / OhioLINK"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Electronic Thesis or Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Health Education"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["doctoral"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy"]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Toledo"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Health Education","Tobacco-Free","College","University","President"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["unrestricted","This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: some rights reserved. It is licensed for use under a Creative Commons license. Specific terms and permissions are available from this document's record in the OhioLINK ETD Center."]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1363093640"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["The purpose of this study was to examine perceptions of college and university presidents with regard to tobacco-free campus policies. The specific aims of this investigation involved determining if presidents supported such policies, what barriers and benefits they perceived to implementing a tobacco-free campus policy, who presidents felt should have a role in establishing a policy, and what activities might help initiate a tobacco-free campus policy. A cross-sectional research design was utilized with randomly selected presidents from four-year higher education institutions. A total of 405 completed surveys were returned for a response rate of 51% (405/790).The majority of respondents were presidents or chancellors (78%). Additional characteristics included being white (88%), male (77%), a non-smoker (74%), and 61 years of age or younger (52%), with six or less years of experience at their current institution (54%). A majority (53%) of respondents indicated their institution was either in the Action or Maintenance stage with the Stages of Change theory. The most commonly selected tobacco prevention initiative presidents’ were taking included appointing a campus wide task force addressing tobacco that was composed of administrators, faculty, staff and students (39%) followed by ensuring resources were budgeted to address tobacco related issues on campus (34%). The vast majority of presidents (90%) indicated they agreed or strongly agreed that advocacy by campus groups is necessary to establish a tobacco-free campus policy.Overall, the most commonly identified support barrier was “lack of a point person to champion the cause,” with 37% of respondents selecting this as either a moderate or major barrier to implementing a tobacco-free campus policy at their institution. The most commonly identified institutional barrier selected was “enforcement issues” (68%). In examining benefits presidents’ perceived if a policy was established on their campus, two items were most frequently selected: “minimizes secondhand smoke exposure” (81%) and “reduces prevalence of tobacco on campus” (81%).Differences emerged between institutions with a policy compared to those without an established policy. Specifically, presidents at institutions with a tobacco-free campus policy were over two times more likely to believe advocacy by campus groups was necessary to establish a policy (OR = 2.44; 95% CI 1.34 – 4.48), five times more likely to indicate less support barriers (OR = 5.25; 95% CI 3.32 – 8.32), and five times more likely to select less institutional barriers (OR = 4.80; 95% CI 2.97 – 7.77). Perceived benefits to establishing a policy did not differ by policy type.Presidents most commonly identified themselves (86%) as having a moderate or major role in establishing a tobacco-free campus policy followed by student affairs (77%) and study body (77%). When presidents were asked to determine how likely preselected activities may be in initiating a tobacco-free campus policy, the most commonly selected response dealt with creating drafts of potential policies for review (80%) and designating a committee for this task (79%).Results are encouraging for tobacco-free advocates pursuing policies on college campuses. Advocacy appears to be a necessary action in order to establish a policy and advocates would likely benefit from focusing on solutions to perceived barriers as opposed to educating on the benefits of such policies."]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf","p.161","1.84 MB"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Perceptions of University and College Presidents Regarding Tobacco-Free Campus Policies"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Glassman, Tavis"],"dc:creator":["Reindl, Diana M."],"dc:date":["2013-08-21"],"dc:description":["The purpose of this study was to examine perceptions of college and university presidents with regard to tobacco-free campus policies. The specific aims of this investigation involved determining if presidents supported such policies, what barriers and benefits they perceived to implementing a tobacco-free campus policy, who presidents felt should have a role in establishing a policy, and what activities might help initiate a tobacco-free campus policy. A cross-sectional research design was utilized with randomly selected presidents from four-year higher education institutions. A total of 405 completed surveys were returned for a response rate of 51% (405/790).The majority of respondents were presidents or chancellors (78%). Additional characteristics included being white (88%), male (77%), a non-smoker (74%), and 61 years of age or younger (52%), with six or less years of experience at their current institution (54%). A majority (53%) of respondents indicated their institution was either in the Action or Maintenance stage with the Stages of Change theory. The most commonly selected tobacco prevention initiative presidents’ were taking included appointing a campus wide task force addressing tobacco that was composed of administrators, faculty, staff and students (39%) followed by ensuring resources were budgeted to address tobacco related issues on campus (34%). The vast majority of presidents (90%) indicated they agreed or strongly agreed that advocacy by campus groups is necessary to establish a tobacco-free campus policy.Overall, the most commonly identified support barrier was “lack of a point person to champion the cause,” with 37% of respondents selecting this as either a moderate or major barrier to implementing a tobacco-free campus policy at their institution. The most commonly identified institutional barrier selected was “enforcement issues” (68%). In examining benefits presidents’ perceived if a policy was established on their campus, two items were most frequently selected: “minimizes secondhand smoke exposure” (81%) and “reduces prevalence of tobacco on campus” (81%).Differences emerged between institutions with a policy compared to those without an established policy. Specifically, presidents at institutions with a tobacco-free campus policy were over two times more likely to believe advocacy by campus groups was necessary to establish a policy (OR = 2.44; 95% CI 1.34 – 4.48), five times more likely to indicate less support barriers (OR = 5.25; 95% CI 3.32 – 8.32), and five times more likely to select less institutional barriers (OR = 4.80; 95% CI 2.97 – 7.77). Perceived benefits to establishing a policy did not differ by policy type.Presidents most commonly identified themselves (86%) as having a moderate or major role in establishing a tobacco-free campus policy followed by student affairs (77%) and study body (77%). When presidents were asked to determine how likely preselected activities may be in initiating a tobacco-free campus policy, the most commonly selected response dealt with creating drafts of potential policies for review (80%) and designating a committee for this task (79%).Results are encouraging for tobacco-free advocates pursuing policies on college campuses. Advocacy appears to be a necessary action in order to establish a policy and advocates would likely benefit from focusing on solutions to perceived barriers as opposed to educating on the benefits of such policies."],"dc:format":["application/pdf","p.161","1.84 MB"],"dc:identifier":["http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=toledo1363093640"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:publisher":["University of Toledo / OhioLINK"],"dc:rights":["unrestricted","This thesis or dissertation is protected by copyright: some rights reserved. It is licensed for use under a Creative Commons license. Specific terms and permissions are available from this document's record in the OhioLINK ETD Center."],"dc:subject":["Health Education","Tobacco-Free","College","University","President"],"dc:title":["Perceptions of University and College Presidents Regarding Tobacco-Free Campus Policies"],"dc:type":["Electronic Thesis or Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Health Education"],"thesis:degree_level":["doctoral"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Philosophy"],"thesis:institution_name":["University of Toledo"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T03:36:39Z"}