DIFICULDADES DE CESSAÇÃO DO TABAGISMO: UM ESTUDO NETNOGRÁFICO

Abstract

Introduction: Smoking is a worldwide public health problem, being one of the major risk factors responsible for preventable death. Its acceptability among young people is increasing, especially after the arrival of electronic cigarettes, which have become more accepted than conventional cigarettes. Knowing this and that electronic technologies are useful in the context of combating smoking and providing information about the damage caused by smoking, it is essential to study how this topic has been discussed in virtual support networks. Goals: Identify and understand the difficulties faced by smokers who seek support for quitting the habit on the QuitNow! app's social network. Methods: Netnographic study carried out in March 2023. There were analysed and observed, fou four days, comments published by QuitNow! participants, who reported several aspects related to the difficulties and factors that impact the act of quitting smoking. Results: There were analyzed 447 messages published in the QuitNow! application discussion forum, and 31 of them were related to difficulties in quitting smoking, with an average of 8 (6.93%) daily messages on this subject. The comments were divided into two themes for carrying out the qualitative analysis, most of them related to physical dependence on cigarettes (n=19) and psychological and behavioral dependence (n=12). Conclusions: Technologies play a fundamental role in helping to quit smoking, but the participants of the investigated social network did not identify an effective method for patient care in moments of craving, often accompanied by anxiety and depression. The knowledge obtained in this investigation can help health professionals to design and implement broader communication and health strategies and public policies, in the sense of presenting technological or non-technological alternatives to support smoking cessation.