Public, private and personal: qualitative research on policymakers' opinions on smokefree interventions to protect children in 'private' spaces.

BACKGROUND: Governments use law to constrain aspects of private activities for purposes of protecting health and social wellbeing. Policymakers have a range of perceptions and beliefs about what is public or private. An understanding of the possible drivers of policymaker decisions about where government can or should intervene for health is important, as one way to better guide appropriate policy formation. Our aim was to identify obstacles to, and opportunities for, government smokefree regulation of private and public spaces to protect children. In particular, to seek policymaker opinions on the regulation of smoking in homes, cars and public parks and playgrounds in a country with incomplete smokefree laws (New Zealand). METHODS: Case study, using structured interviews to ask policymakers (62 politicians and senior officials) about their opinions on new smokefree legislation for public and private places. Supplementary data was obtained from the Factiva media database, on the views of New Zealand local authority councillors about policies for smokefree outdoor public places. RESULTS: Overall, interviewees thought that government regulation of smoking in private places was impractical and unwise. However, there were some differences on what was defined as 'private', particularly for cars. Even in public parks, smoking was seen by some as a 'personal' decision, and unlikely to be amenable to regulation. Most participants believed that educative, supportive and community-based measures were better and more practical means of reducing smoking in private places, compared to regulation. CONCLUSIONS: The constrained view of the role of regulation of smoking in public and private domains may be in keeping with current political discourse in New Zealand and similar Anglo-American countries. Policy and advocacy options to promote additional smokefree measures include providing a better voice for childrens' views, increasing information to policymakers about the harms to children from secondhand smoke and the example of adult smoking, and changing the culture for smoking around children.

Constructing adolescent fatherhood: responsibilities and intergenerational repair.

The parenthood literature has, until recently, paid scant attention to adolescent fathers. Negative stereotypes portray these young men as delinquents, unwilling to participate in the lives of their children. Recent research has challenged negative views by examining the impact of fatherhood on these young men and concluding that they are far from uninvolved and disinterested in their children. The current study extends this line of research by charting the ways young fathers talk about their responsibilities and hopes for their children's futures. Young fathers were interviewed and the data analysed discursively in order to further explore the meaning of fatherhood. The analysis focuses on the ways paternal responsibilities were constructed and the notion of intergenerational repair is introduced as one of the features of this talk. The implications for practitioners are discussed in the context of a more critical approach whereby taken-for-granted assumptions are questioned in this highly politicised area.