Conceptual issues in the study of relapse

Harold M. had been smoking for twenty years when he decided to quit. His wife and son had been urging him to quit for some time, but it was Jim’s sudden death from heart failure that finally boosted his determination. Harold thought about how often he and Jim had smoked together in determined defiance of all the health warnings. Now Jim was dead; he had been two years younger than Harold. Harold had tried to quit four times before; the longest and most recent lasted five months. Nevertheless, Harold felt confident that he would quit this time; he felt more strongly motivated than he ever had before.