What Young Vapers Actually Want When They Try to Quit
Eighty percent of young adult vapers wanted help quitting, but their preferred methods varied wildly—and nearly 40% also vaped cannabis, which they perceived as less harmful than nicotine.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
This survey of 480 Wisconsin residents ages 18–24 who vaped nicotine reveals a population that is motivated to quit but deeply divided on how.
The headline: 80% wanted support to quit vaping. Most had already made at least one quit attempt, typically driven by concerns about addiction, cost, and health. But here's the paradox—the same methods that some young adults endorsed as most helpful (medication, friends/family, healthcare providers, therapists) were also among the methods others said they would never want to use. There was no consensus approach.
The cannabis finding is particularly striking. Nearly 40% of participants also vaped cannabis, and they perceived cannabis vaping as significantly less harmful than nicotine vaping or tobacco for both physical and mental health. This harm perception gap matters because it may make young people less receptive to messages about reducing all substance use.
The motivational data paints a clear picture: cost and addiction concerns drove quit attempts more than health worries. For a generation that came of age with vaping, the health risks may feel abstract, while spending $30–50 per week on pods and worrying about dependence feels immediate and concrete.
Key Numbers
N = 480, ages 18–24. 80% wanted help quitting. ~40% also vaped cannabis. Cannabis vaping perceived as significantly less harmful than nicotine vaping. Most common quit motivators: addiction concerns, cost, health problems.
How They Did This
Cross-sectional online survey of 480 Wisconsin residents aged 18–24 who vaped nicotine in the past month. Assessed vaping initiation, quit history, future quit intentions, treatment knowledge and preferences. Also measured perceived harms of vaping nicotine, cannabis, and CBD products.
Why This Research Matters
Cessation programs for young vapers can't be one-size-fits-all. This data shows that the same treatment modality that appeals to one young person actively repels another. Effective programs will need to offer multiple options and let individuals choose—a personalization approach. The finding that cost and addiction (not health) drive quit motivation also suggests that health-fear messaging may be less effective than financial or autonomy-focused framing for this age group.
The Bigger Picture
The 40% cannabis co-use rate here is lower than the 74.6% in RTHC-00156's adolescent sample, which may reflect different sampling methods or age ranges. The harm perception gap—viewing cannabis as safer than nicotine—connects to the broader question of how legalization shapes risk perception (RTHC-00162 on stable teen use rates despite legalization). The treatment preference data complements RTHC-00154 and RTHC-00156's findings on cessation outcomes, adding the demand side: what young people actually want from cessation programs.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
Wisconsin-specific sample may not generalize nationally. Online survey with self-selected participants. Self-reported vaping and cannabis use. The paradox of the same methods being both most-endorsed and most-rejected may partly reflect the survey design rather than true bimodal preferences.
Questions This Raises
- ?Would offering a menu of cessation approaches (app, medication, counseling, texting) increase engagement compared to single-modality programs?
- ?Does the perception that cannabis is safer than nicotine actually affect quit behavior?
- ?How should cessation programs address the nearly 40% who also vape cannabis?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- Evidence Grade:
- Cross-sectional survey from a single state—good for understanding preferences but limited in generalizability.
- Study Age:
- Published in 2025 with current data on vaping products and cessation preferences.
- Original Title:
- Wisconsin Young Adults' Attitudes, Beliefs, Motivations, and Behaviors Surrounding E-Cigarette Use and Cessation.
- Published In:
- WMJ : official publication of the State Medical Society of Wisconsin, 124(2), 129-134 (2025) — WMJ is a peer-reviewed medical journal published by the State Medical Society of Wisconsin, focusing on health issues relevant to the state.
- Authors:
- Kaye, Jesse T(2), Williams, Brian S, Bird, Jennifer, Conner, Karen L, Adsit, Rob, Piper, Megan E
- Database ID:
- RTHC-06805
Evidence Hierarchy
A snapshot of a population at one point in time.
What do these levels mean? →Read More on RethinkTHC
- 30-days-without-weed
- 420-sober-survival-guide
- 6-months-sober-weed-what-to-expect
- 90-days-no-weed
- CBT-cannabis-recovery
- benefits-of-quitting-weed
- boredom-after-quitting-weed
- boredom-after-quitting-weed-nothing-fun
- cannabis-relapse-cycle-pattern
- cold-turkey-vs-taper-quit-weed
- creativity-without-weed-quitting-artist-musician
- dating-sober-after-quitting-weed
- exercise-quitting-weed-anxiety-brain
- grieving-quitting-weed-loss
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- how-to-talk-to-teenager-about-weed
- identity-after-quitting-weed
- journaling-weed-withdrawal
- kids-friends-smoke-weed-parent-guide
- leaving-stoner-culture-identity
- marijuana-anonymous-SMART-recovery-compare
- meditation-mindfulness-weed-withdrawal
- money-saved-quitting-weed-calculator
- one-year-sober-weed
- parent-smokes-weed-kids-hypocrite
- partner-still-smokes-weed
- partner-still-smokes-weed-quitting
- pink-cloud-sobriety-cannabis
- quit-weed-cold-turkey
- quit-weed-or-cut-back-which-is-better
- quit-weed-regret-went-back
- quitting-weed-20s
- quitting-weed-30s
- quitting-weed-after-years
- quitting-weed-creativity
- quitting-weed-during-crisis-divorce-job-loss
- quitting-weed-exercise
- quitting-weed-face-changes-skin
- quitting-weed-grief-loss-coping
- quitting-weed-legal-state
- quitting-weed-parent
- quitting-weed-success-stories
- quitting-weed-teenager-young-adult
- quitting-weed-triggers-environment
- quitting-weed-weight-loss-gain
- relapsed-smoking-weed-what-to-do
- relapsed-weed
- should-i-quit-weed
- sober-music-festival-concert-without-weed
- supplements-weed-withdrawal
- teenager-smoking-weed-parent-guide
- telling-friends-quitting-weed
- weed-relapse-prevention-plan
- weed-relapse-why-it-happens
- weed-ritual-replacement
- weed-ruined-relationships
- weed-social-media-triggers-quit
Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-06805APA
Kaye, Jesse T; Williams, Brian S; Bird, Jennifer; Conner, Karen L; Adsit, Rob; Piper, Megan E. (2025). Wisconsin Young Adults' Attitudes, Beliefs, Motivations, and Behaviors Surrounding E-Cigarette Use and Cessation.. WMJ : official publication of the State Medical Society of Wisconsin, 124(2), 129-134.
MLA
Kaye, Jesse T, et al. "Wisconsin Young Adults' Attitudes, Beliefs, Motivations, and Behaviors Surrounding E-Cigarette Use and Cessation.." WMJ : official publication of the State Medical Society of Wisconsin, 2025.
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "Wisconsin Young Adults' Attitudes, Beliefs, Motivations, and..." RTHC-06805. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/kaye-2025-wisconsin-young-adults-attitudes
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.