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Is 'hardcore smoker' a useful term in tobacco control?

There has been interest in recent years in a phenomenon that has been termed the ‘hardcore’ or ‘hardened’ smoker . Studies have been published estimating the prevalence of such smokers in specific populations, and whether this proportion has changed over time. The hard-core smoker has been conceptualised as a ‘daily, long-term smoker who is unable or unwilling to quit and who is likely to remain so even when possessing extensive knowledge about the hazards of smoking and when confronting substantial social disapprobation of smoking’. The notion that, as smoking prevalence declines in a population, the remaining smokers are increasingly resistant to change, possesses intuitive attraction. However, operational definition and measurement have proved difficult.