About the China Seven Cities Study (CSCS)

The China Seven Cities Study is a longitudinal investigation of substance use and lifestyles in seven of China’s most populace urban areas:  Harbin and Shenyang in the northeast, Wuhan in central China, Chengdu and Kunming in the southwest, and Hangzhou and Qingdao in the coast regions.  The seven cities represent a broad spectrum of economic developmental stages, thus providing a unique opportunity to study regional variations of the impact of westernization and modernization on substance use and control.

CSCS research identifies and assesses specific influences on tobacco use, alcohol use, and other related health behaviors among youth, college students, and adults arising from unprecedented economic growth and subsequent social and cultural changes occurring in China as it moves towards a market economy.  A secondary purpose of the CSCS is to provide training in research methodology, application, and infrastructure development to Chinese public health professionals interested in tobacco and alcohol control research.

Dr. C. Anderson Johnson is director and principal investigator of both the Pacific Rim Transdisciplinary Tobacco & Alcohol Use Research Center and the CSCS.  He leads a consortium consisting of the School of Community and Global Health at Claremont Graduate University, the Institute for Health Promotion & Disease Prevention Research at the University of Southern California; the Health Bureaus, Centers for Disease Control, and Institute of Health Education in seven cities; the China Center for Disease Control and Prevention; Peking University; and at least one university in each of the seven participating provinces.  The municipal government, Health Bureau, and Education Committee in each city provide additional support.