Introduction: Craving may represent core motivational processes in tobacco dependence, but there is no psychometrically evaluated measure of craving for e-cigarettes (vaping craving). This research developed and validated a brief measure of vaping craving.
Methods: The measure was evaluated in two studies. In Study 1, a 42-item questionnaire assessing a wide range of vaping craving content was administered to 209 current e-cigarette users. In Study 2, a 10-item questionnaire derived from Study 1 results was administered to 224 current e-cigarette users. Participants were recruited from Amazon's Mechanical Turk, an online labor market.
Results: Principal factor analysis identified the strongest loading items (.815-.867) on the first extracted factor (77% of the factor variance) for inclusion in a 10-item Questionnaire of Vaping Craving (QVC). This item set, with an internal consistency (α) of .97, focused on desire and intent to vape, and anticipation of positive outcomes related to e-cigarette use. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed the items had strong factor loadings that were significantly predicted by the latent vaping craving construct (ps < .001). Higher vaping craving was significantly associated with the level of e-cigarette use, greater negative mood, and lower confidence in ability to quit vaping (ps < .01). Among participants who also smoked tobacco (87%), vaping craving was more strongly associated with e-cigarette dependence than tobacco dependence.
Conclusions: The findings support the reliability and validity of the QVC and suggest it could be used in laboratory and clinical settings as a psychometrically sound measure of vaping craving.
Implications: This study is the first reporting the development and validation of a brief, practical, multi-item measure to assess vaping craving. This psychometrically sound assessment for vaping craving could improve understanding of the nature of vaping craving, advance current tobacco cessation strategies, and increase users' ability to cope with craving.