Methods: Telephone interviews were conducted by the University of Florida Survey and Research Center. Using a cross-sectional design, the data were collected in the Summer 2006 through February 2007. The survey sampling frame was generated from student lists and designed to identify households which contain a youth within the targeted age range: 12-17. A sample of 1,816 youths completed the interviews. Respondents were asked to assess their past and current smoking experiences, their attitudes and beliefs about tobacco, their intentions to smoke, susceptibility to smoke, as well as all demographic characteristics.

Results: Between 2006 and 2007, 25.6% of youths responded they had tried smoking, with 9.5% of youths being current smokers. The items used to measure susceptibility to smoke showed youths were less likely to smoke if someone who was cool offered them a cigarette and less likely to have friends who smoked; yet, 37.5% of youths were willing to wear an article of clothing with a tobacco company logo on it. When we examined youth's intentions to smoke, while we found most youths had no intention to smoke a cigarette in the next year (81.4%) a number of youths did.

Conclusions: While cigarette smoking has declined, youth's susceptibility to smoke and youth's intentions to smoke emphasize the importance of having a strong anti-tobacco youth prevention program.