CSP #725 - Mood and Smoking: A Comparison of Smoking Cessation Treatments

Objectives:

The long term objectives of this research program are:

1. To advance the mission of the VHA Boston Healthcare System to deliver comprehensive quality healthcare that meets the needs of patients (in this case, who have been unresponsive to standard smoking cessation treatment) through research and clinical care.
2. To expand upon our knowledge of the feasibility and effectiveness of commonly-used treatments for nicotine dependence.
3. To further explore variables related to mood and coping that may contribute to or prevent successful reduction and cessation of smoking behavior among veterans.

The short-term objectives of this project are:

1. To evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of two adjunctive treatments (a mood-focused exposure-based treatment, Mood Tolerance, with Nicotine Replacement Therapy [MTNRT] and mood-focused affect-management treatment, Mood Management, with Nicotine Replacement Therapy [MMNRT]) aimed at reduction and cessation of smoking behavior among veterans who were previously non-responders to smoking cessation treatment in the VA.
2. To inform equivocal findings in the literature regarding the role of mood as trigger for smoking behavior.
3. To explore selected mood, coping, and individual difference variable that may be predictive of successful abstinence from cigarettes among veterans.