Midproject findings from a study of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's policy on smokeless tobacco use.

In this paper we present midproject findings from a longitudinal survey of 5,000 male athletes at 56 randomly selected American colleges and universities. The study monitors athletes' compliance with and perceptions of the effects of an organizational policy that restricts smokeless tobacco (ST) use. In 1996 and 1997, 77% of users reported that they complied with the policy during competition. During the same period there was a significant increase in the number of users who complied with policy during practices and of those who credited the policy with contributing to a decline in their overall tobacco consumption (14% vs 68%, p < .001; 17% vs 23%, p < .01: respectively). The findings suggest that organizational policies that regulate ST use can have an impact on young adult ST use.