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A study conducted at the University of Wisconsin found that people who smoke cigarettes daily during their college careers are more likely to continue the habit, while nearly half of the students who smoke only occasionally put down the match.

The research, conducted by the Center for Tobacco Research and Intervention at UW’s Medical School, followed 647 freshmen and sophomores in an introductory psychology course who identified themselves as non-smokers, occasional smokers or daily smokers. The researchers checked in with the students four years after the original survey, asking whether the students categorize themselves the same way or if they changed their smoking habits.

Only 13 percent of daily smokers were able to quit, while 28 percent of the daily smokers switched to smoking occasionally. Fifty-nine percent of the original daily smokers still smoked every day.

Approximately 14 percent of occasional smokers, who smoke once a week or as little as a few times a month, developed cigarettes into a daily habit. Thirty-five percent of this category continued to smoke only occasionally, whereas almost 51 percent quit.

Dr. Michael Fiore, director of CTRI, said in a news release that student preconceptions about smoking would predict whether or not the individual would continue or quit using tobacco.

When students believed smoking might provide benefits, such as controlling weight and relieving stress, they were more likely to continue to smoke, whereas nonsmokers believed other behavior could do the same. These presumptions, according to Fiore, could supply an area for intervention and cessation promotion.

“Helping students to develop realistic expectations about smoking and to find other ways to cope with negative feelings may be helpful in reducing dependence upon smoking,” Fiore said in the release. “This is critical since we know that half of those who become daily lifetime smokers will be killed prematurely by a disease directly caused by their smoking … Because their smoking status seems more changeable than adults, college students may be more receptive to smoking cessation.”

Marnie McFarland, a UW sophomore and daily smoker, backed up parts of the study.

She feels smoking does have some benefits, such as keeping her awake when necessary, settling her stomach after a big meal or providing a temporary stress reliever.

“I don’t plan to quit, not right now,” McFarland said, adding that she still enjoys smoking, although she does not want to continue the habit when she is older. She also said she knows there are tools out there to help smokers quit.

UW junior Joseph Tater rotates being a daily smoker to an occasional smoker on a semi-monthly basis. Like McFarland, he does not wish to stop smoking right now. Tater said he knows it is not a healthy habit and wants to quit upon graduation.

“I know [smoking] is a bad thing,” Tater said. “When I get done here, I’ll have to quit.”

The study also found that nearly 89 percent of non-smokers abstained from smoking four years after the original survey. None of them became daily smokers. However, 11.5 percent of the non-smokers began to smoke on an occasional basis after four years in college.

Fiore said students wishing to quit smoking should either call the Wisconsin tobacco quit line (1-877-270-STOP) or use the resources available at University Health Services, where counseling is available and staffers can prescribe cessation medication.

“There are no magic bullets out there,” Fiore said. “But if you are motivated … [these resources and prescriptions] can markedly enhance the success rate of quitting.”