PROJECT EX-1: A NEW SCHOOL-BASED
CLINIC PROGRAM
Project EX-1 was a three-year project funded by
the Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program (1997-
2000). The approach utilized in Project EX-1 was to
strengthen the scientific foundation and practical utility
of a multi-session program using iterative development
and evaluation [20].
Project EX-1 program development studies
Focus Groups. Focus group methodology is one
of the most widely used qualitative research tools in the
applied social sciences [14,21]. This approach has been
described as being applicable to various aspects of research
including exploratory or hypothesis generation,
clinical uses (assessing respondents' nonverbal as well
as verbal behavior), phenomenological uses (generating
data within a group process-oriented setting), and confirmatory
uses (interpreting results obtained through
quantitative methods).
Funded by an American Cancer Society seed
money grant (1997-1999), an iterative focus group protocol
was used to try to generate information to motivate
youth to remain in a cessation clinic program, try
to quit, and sustain a successful quit effort. Nineteen
groups (total n=233) composed of half tobacco users
and half nonusers met for a 30-minute period to generate
themes that might motivate youth to quit during the
course of a cessation clinic. Each set of questions in
subsequent rounds was developed derived from responses
to questions in prior rounds.
Two types of focus group questions were asked.
The first set of questions requested adolescents’ reasons
for smoking and quitting, and perceived efficacious
activities. The second set focused on the drive-energy
model of motivation. Youth reported that a trusting and
intimate school-based quit-clinic environment was desired.
One key obstacle noted was the challenge of figuring
out how to avoid associating with other tobacco
users. Keeping one’s mind on something other than
tobacco use was considered of major importance for
quitting.