Using convenience stores to help adults quit smoking
Official title: Harnessing the power of convenience stores to help adults quit smoking
Funded at Rand Corporation · NIH-11341234 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A funded project tests whether advertising in real-looking convenience stores can help adults become more interested in quitting smoking and use quitting resources.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Rand Corporation NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Santa Monica, United States) |
| Project start | July 10, 2026 |
| Project end | June 30, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $648,337 |
| NIH project number | 1R01CA311862-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11341234 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults 21+ who smoke and visit convenience stores, with follow-up for those interested in quitting.
✕Less likely to help
Smokers who are not engaged with quitting resources or not reachable through the storefront setting may see limited benefit.
What this research studies
This project uses a life-sized RAND StoreLab to test different in-store messaging about quitting smoking and available resources. It focuses on adults 21 and older who are current smokers and tracks how their attitudes and intentions toward quitting change after exposure to tailored messages. The study will compare messaging strategies to see which ones best move people toward using quit resources like lines, apps, or online services. Results will guide how retailers and public health programs design in-store messages to support quitting efforts. The work will involve a series of controlled experiments in a realistic store environment to measure impact on quitting orientation.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, it could reveal effective in-store messaging strategies that increase uptake of proven quitting resources among adults who smoke.
How similar studies have gone: Preliminary research in controlled environments suggests environmental cues can influence health behaviors, with this study extending to real-world retail messaging.
Where this research is happening
-
Rand Corporation
Santa Monica, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Shadel, William G — Rand Corporation
- Study coordinator: Shadel, William G
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Blood-based markers to identify lung cancer risk in never-smokers
A researchers team at NYU School of Medicine is testing blood tests that might flag higher lung cancer risk in people who have never smoked, helping decide who might need screening.
-
Social stress and smoking: why disadvantaged young adults struggle to quit
This grant looks at how daily social stress affects if and when disadvantaged young adults who smoke can quit and stay quit.
-
BSMART: A program to help people with HIV quit smoking
A program in HIV care settings tests a proven plan to help people with HIV quit smoking, using quick counseling and a switch to quitting medications.
-
BSMAT: Helping people with HIV quit smoking through routine support
A HIV care program in Botswana aims to help people living with HIV quit smoking using a proven 5A brief intervention plus support medication.
-
Improving treatment for people with HIV who smoke and drink in Nairobi, Kenya
A study tests a new plan to help people with HIV in Nairobi quit smoking and reduce heavy drinking, using a low-cost medicine and counseling.
-
I-STOP: a mobile health program to help people with HIV quit smoking
A smartphone-based program designed to help people with HIV quit smoking in a sustainable, affordable way.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.