Depression and stages of change for smoking in psychiatric outpatients

Abstract This article reports on the relations between depression and stages of change for smoking cessation. A convenience sample of 205 psychiatric outpatients (68% female, mean age 41) completed measures of depression Primary Care Evaluation of Mental Disorders [PRIME-MD] and Beck Depression Inventory-II [BDI-II]), all transtheoretical model constructs related to smoking (stages and processes of change, pros and cons of smoking, and situational temptations), and thoughts about abstinence. As hypothesized, patients who had never smoked showed substantially lower rates of currently diagnosed major depressive disorder (MDD) than those who had ever smoked. Patients in early stages of change did not show more MDD or depressive symptoms but, as hypothesized, showed more negative thoughts about abstinence. Findings are consistent with the documented association between smoking and depression and suggest the appropriateness of building smoking cessation interventions based on the transtheoretical model of change for use with psychiatric populations.