Smoking in the age of clean air

The behavior of smoking is one of the most important social and public health issues today. This thesis focuses on the smoker in a south Florida bar district. Through the analysis of forty interviews and one hundred surveys, I uncovered why individuals smoke and how they rationalize the behavior in spite of known health risks. The four emerging themes as to why individuals smoke were for the creation of self-image, pleasure and relaxation, reinforce social relations and mood maintenance. The two themes regarding the rationalization behind the behavior were "it's better than other vices" argument and the "life is dangerous" argument. Individuals know that smoking is a health risk; however, the way in which individuals rationalize the behavior allows them to continue the behavior.