Dispositional mindfulness, affect and tobacco dependence among treatment naive cigarette smokers in Brazil

Introduction: The current study examined associations between affective and smoking-related factors, and dispositional mindfulness among smokers seeking enrollment in a cessation program in Brazil. Methods: Participants were first-time treatment seeking adult smokers (N=90) on a waiting list for a government-sponsored cessation program. Pearson’s bivariate correlations assessed relationships between the primary outcome variable (dispositional mindfulness) and each explanatory variable (nicotine dependence, depression, anxiety, and state positive/negative affect). Linear regression analyses evaluated the unique contribution of each explanatory variable when controlling for the others. Results: The sample (N=90) was predominantly female (n=71) and most (79%) had 11 or fewer years of education. In the final regression model, a total of 36.2% of the variance in dispositional mindfulness was accounted for by positive affect (B=0.81, p< 0.001), negative affect (B= -0.44, p=0.02), and level of nicotine dependence (B=1.48, p=0.007). Conclusions: Positive and negative affect, as well as nicotine dependence, account for a significant and sizable amount of the variance in dispositional mindfulness. Future mindfulness interventions for smoking cessation should be designed to address individual differences in affect, as well as nicotine dependence, in order to better tailor treatment to address baseline differences in mindfulness.