[Prevalence of tobacco smoking university students and health locus of control].

Global spread of diseases of civilization, such as cardiovascular disease, metabolic diseases, cancers, caused, that individual or group healthy behaviours, have become, for practitioners and researches, a basic area of interest. Healthy behaviours are the effect of shaped attitude against health, and particular against a sense of responsibility for owns health and co-responsibility for others health. Health Locus of Control theory indicates, that there exist relations between owns health locus of control and providing pro-health activities, for example reduce tobacco smoking. The aim of the study was the assessment of relation between prevalence of tobacco smoking among university students and health locus of control. The study was carried out among 457 university students from Podkarpackie Region- University of Rzeszow PWSZ Krosno and PWSZ Sanok. The survey was conducted by means of diagnostic survey with the use of questionnaire and Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale Form B- MHCL-B. The Spearman's rank correlation coefficient and chi-square test were used in statistic analyzes. The study proved that the majority of students has never smoked and does not smoke. Place of residence turned out to be a differentiation factor of tobacco smoking, and there were more smokers among students living in cities. There were observed no characteristic differences in the group of smokers and non-smokers and health locus of control. Internal control, in the opinion of studied group, was recognized to be the most important factor, more less role was attributed to the impact of others and a chance. Faculty of study turned out to different the assessment of importance of internal control and a chance for health state. Internal control was the least emphasized by nursing students, and a chance by obstetrics students.