Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2011, 8 4209 not measured in this study and neither was either attitude or avoidance behavior toward SHS exposure. Badran et al. [8] conducted a cross sectional study in the capital city Amman employing a convenience sample of 220 infants and mothers attending an outpatient pediatric clinic. This study identified SHS exposure using two measures: the mother’s self report of household exposure and cotinine levels from both infants (urine) and mothers (saliva). Mothers reported that 60% of the infants were exposed to SHS. Correspondingly, 36.4% of the infants had detectable levels (7.1 ng/mg) of urine cotinine. The study also found cotinine in saliva among eight of the 20 mothers with neonates (1–2 days old), implying in-utero SHS exposure. Abu Baker et al. [9] interviewed 300 postpartum women and reviewed their neonates’ health records for the purpose of measuring SHS exposure during pregnancy. The results showed that SHS exposure occurred primarily in the home, and the rate of hourly exposure was high across all three trimesters. Among women who reported SHS exposure at home, 52.7% reported their spouses as the smoker in question. Further, the average number of hours of SHS exposure per week in all settings (home, work, and outdoors) in the second trimester explained 22% of the variance in neonatal birth weight in the sample. Although fewer women smoke in Jordan than men, women are exposed to high rates of SHS in the household setting. In this authoritarian culture and male dominated family structure, apparently men who are smokers rule many Jordanian families. In a typical Jordanian household, there are distinct gender roles where men take precedence over women in shaping the social practices at home [5,10]. Thus, empowering women could facilitate reduction of SHS exposure at the household level and the adverse effects among their children. This study focused on working women with higher education profiles because SHS exposure was hypothesized to be the lower among this group to compare with other studies that reflect high SHS exposure rates among uneducated and less educated women in Jordan. The study setting was a university environment where workplace smoking should be limited due to institutional policy. Approaching this socio-economic group is the first such attempt in Jordan; the findings will serve as foundational data on women’s perceptions about SHS exposure to assist in developing tobacco control programs aimed at improving maternal-children health. The specific aim of this study is to assess the women knowledge, attitudes, and avoidance behavior towards SHS exposure among working women with higher education. 2. Methods 2.1. Setting and Population Data were collected using a convenience sample of women employed at one of two large national universities (Jordan University of Science and Technology located in the northern area of Jordan and Hashemite University located more centrally in Jordan). The two universities employ around 1,500 women in staff and academic positions, and enroll more than 40 thousand students in many educational disciplines. 2.2. Data Collection Protocol This study was approved as exempt level study by the institutional review board of Jordan University of Science and Technology. During a three months period, from August to October 2010, the investigators