Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2011, 8, 4207-4219; doi:10.3390/ijerph8114207 OPEN ACCESS International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ISSN 1660-4601 www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph Article Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behavior in Avoiding Secondhand Smoke Exposure Among Non-Smoking Employed Women with Higher Education in Jordan Huda Gharaibeh 1, Linda Haddad 2,*, Sukaina Alzyoud 3, Omar El-Shahawy 4,5, Nesrin Abu Baker 1 and Mary Umlauf 6 1 School of Nursing, Jordan University of Science and Technology, P.O. Box 3030, Irbid, Postal Code 22110, Jordan; E-Mails: hudag@just.edu.jo (H.G.); nesrin@just.edu.jo (N.A.B.) 2 Institute for Drug and Alcohol Studies, School of Nursing, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23298, USA 3 School of Nursing, Hashemite University, Amman, Postal Code 13133, Jordan; E-Mail: sukaina-alzyoud@hu.edu.jo 4 General Medical Management, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Postal Code 11355, Egypt; E-Mail: oshahawy@gmail.com 5 Institute of Drug and Alcohol Studies, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23298, USA, E-Mail: elshahawyo@vcu.edu 6 School of Nursing, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, USA; E-Mail: mgumlauf@ua.edu * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: lhaddad2@vcu.edu; Tel.: +1-804-828-0433; Fax: +1-804-828-7743. Received: 27 September 2011; in revised form: 25 October 2011 / Accepted: 3 November 2011 / Published: 9 November 2011 Abstract: Secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure is a serious public health threat worldwide; in the developing world there are less serious efforts towards controlling women’s and children’s exposure to SHS. Knowledge, attitudes and avoidance practices among Jordanian women have never been thoroughly studied. The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge, attitudes, and avoidance behavior towards SHS exposure among employed Jordanian women with higher education. Methods: A survey was conducted among employed Jordanian women at two universities. A total of 209 women were included in the analysis. Two questionnaires regarding SHS exposure were used to