Message Framing for Telephone Quitline Callers

• 24 Hour Abstinence [ Time Frame: 2 week follow up ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  The number of survey respondents that had abstained from smoking at the 2 week follow up.
• 7 Day Abstinence [ Time Frame: 3 month follow up ] [ Designated as safety issue: No ]
  The number of survey respondents that had abstained from smoking for 7 days at the 3 month follow up.

The purpose of this study is to compare "Yale coaching" counseling and "Yale" print information to standard care counseling and standard care print information. We hypothesize that "Yale coaching" counseling and "Yale" information will produce higher abstinence rates than standard care counseling and standard care information. We will use these data to determine effect size estimates for a large scale study.

This pilot study is meant to be translational (i.e., we expect that positive study results could easily translate to the actual practices of the NYS Smokers' Quitline) - as much as possible, we will follow the standard practices of the Quitline. In this context, a randomized pilot clinical trial comparing exclusively "Yale coaching" counseling + "Yale" print materials (YC condition) to standard care Quitline counseling + standard print materials (SC condition) will be conducted with individuals calling the NYS Smokers' Quitline for assistance in quitting smoking. Following assessment of eligibility and informed consent, 2,500 smokers will be assisted by Specialists in either the YC or SC experimental conditions.

Consistent with the current practices of the Quitline, following the counseling intervention, participants will be mailed a package containing print materials encouraging smoking cessation, and participants eligible for NRT will receive a 2-week supply of nicotine replacement medication. Consistent with Quitline practices, all callers will be required to set a "quit date" within 2 weeks of their initial call. A Quitline Specialist will initiate a follow-up call approximately 10 to 14 days after the print materials and NRT has been mailed. For callers receiving NRT, the manufacturer's suggested course of therapy (e.g., 8 weeks of NRT) will be recited to callers, and Quitline Specialists will suggest that callers use the money they save from not smoking to purchase additional NRT and/or that they check with their insurance carrier to see if additional NRT would be covered.

Participants will be assessed before receiving the "Yale coaching" counseling or standard care counseling, immediately after receiving counseling, approximately 1 week after their quit date for those who receive NRT, and at a 3-month follow-up to see if the YC counseling and YC print materials, as predicted, are more likely to promote smoking cessation. We will also administer several brief measures that assess potential mediators of treatment.

• Smoking
• Nicotine Dependence

• Behavioral: "Yale coaching"
  Novel messages for quitting smoking
• Behavioral: Standard care
  Standard messages for quitting smoking

• Experimental: 1
  "Yale coaching" counseling + "Yale" print information
  Intervention: Behavioral: "Yale coaching"
• Placebo Comparator: 2
  Standard care counseling + standard care print information
  Intervention: Behavioral: Standard care

Inclusion Criteria:

• Adults (18+ years)
• New York State residents
• English-speaking
• Current smokers who utilize Quitline services seeking quitting assistance for themselves

Exclusion Criteria:

• Callers who are enrolled in the Proactive Program for Medicaid/uninsured clients, or special programs through their insurance company or county