Impact of Cigarette Prices on Youth Smoking Onset in Montenegro [Policy Brief]

This Policy Brief was written by the Institute for Socio-Economic Analysis (ISEA) in Montenegro. The policy brief aims to assess the effect of price and non-price policies, regulatory changes, and other relevant factors on youth smoking initiation. The authors find that cigarette prices are an important factor in youth smoking initiation. Specifically, raising prices by 10% would reduce the probability of smoking onset among youth between 2.2% and 3.7%, with an even stronger effect on females. Other factors that are associated with a higher risk of smoking include being a male, peer and parental smoking, considering smoking as a factor of better social inclusion and acceptance, and being exposed to tobacco advertising. Cigarette prices also have an indirect effect on youth smoking initiation through other factors, such as peer and parental smoking. The policy brief concludes with the policy implications of these results and highlights the importance of both price and non-price tobacco control policies to deter youth from taking up smoking. 

The corresponding Working Paper can be found here.