Continued Deficits of the Perceived Harms of Cigarette Smoking Among Young Adults: Insights from Participants on Amazon Mechanical Turk

Young adults are an age group that has been the target of multiple education campaigns regarding the harms of cigarette smoke exposure. Although smoking rates of conventional cigarettes have declined in the US, continued usage is noted among a select subset of the population aged 18 –30 years. This group either serves as current or soon-to-be future caretakers of young children who will likely spend a significant amount of time exposed to their cigarette byproducts. Understanding their current knowledge base of the dangers of secondhand smoke and the means to address these risks are of major importance for the welfare of young children. We had utilized a brief and limited sample size survey to explore the utility of using an online task marketplace on Amazon.com® to assess secondhand smoking beliefs and financial incentives among young adults. The pilot study had a particular focus on the perception and means to minimize smoke exposure among children residing with young adults serving as their primary caretaker or fellow home residents.