"Same Cigarette" vs "Less Harmful": Clear Perception Gap Between Smokers and Non-Smokers

Significant Gap in Perceptions of Electronic Cigarette Risks
Policy Acceptance Levels Similar; Women Show Higher Acceptance Than Men

Perceptions of the health risks of electronic cigarettes differ significantly between smokers and non-smokers. In contrast, acceptance of overall tobacco control policies was found to be similar between the two groups.

On June 21, Yonhap News Agency reported this, citing the "Public Perceptions and Acceptance of Tobacco Control Policies" report published by the Korea Health Promotion Institute.

Electronic cigarettes, including liquid-type e-cigarettes, are displayed at an e-cigarette store in Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

According to the report, an online survey was conducted from November 18 to December 4 last year, targeting 1,200 adults aged 19 and older nationwide. The results showed a clear divide in perceptions of the health risks of electronic cigarettes, depending on whether respondents were smokers or non-smokers.

When asked whether "electronic cigarette smoke (aerosol) is harmful to health," non-smokers gave an average score of 93.3 out of 100, while smokers gave a much lower average of 72.8. The gap between the two groups amounted to 20.6 points.

On the statement "electronic cigarettes should not be used indoors," non-smokers scored 94.4 points and smokers 75.4 points, marking a difference of 19 points. Similarly, regarding the perception that "electronic cigarettes are as harmful to health as regular cigarettes," non-smokers scored 93.2 points and smokers 76.5 points.

Support for tobacco control policies also differed in some areas. In particular, for tobacco price policies, non-smokers showed a high level of support at 82.6 points, while smokers gave only 52.6 points, resulting in a gap of 30 points.

Risk perception of electronic cigarettes differs significantly between smokers and non-smokers. Provided by Korea Health Promotion Institute

However, smokers also showed relatively high levels of support for anti-smoking advertisements and campaigns (72.3 points) and youth smoking prevention policies (72.5 points). This suggests that there is a certain degree of social consensus between non-smokers and smokers on the need to protect youth and create a smoke-free environment.

Overall acceptance of policy was similar regardless of smoking status. The acceptance score for tobacco control policies—calculated by combining policy awareness, perceived helpfulness, satisfaction, and other factors—was 68.4 points for non-smokers and 66.3 points for smokers.

By gender, women showed slightly higher acceptance of most policies than men. However, for tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship regulations, men scored higher at 68.0 points compared to women at 65.1 points. This suggests that men, who have a relatively higher smoking rate, are more likely to recognize the necessity of regulating tobacco advertisements.

The Korea Health Promotion Institute stated, "While overall awareness of the health risks of electronic cigarettes is high, the gap between smokers and non-smokers remains large. It is necessary to provide accurate health information and strengthen policy promotion."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.