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Kirsten Lochbuehler, Kathrin Schuck, Roy Otten, Linda Ringlever, Marieke Hiemstra

• \(\textit {Aims:}\) We summarized and discussed the empirical evidence for an association between parental smoking and smoking-related cognitions among youth and for the mediating role of smoking-related cognitions in the relation between parental and youth smoking behaviour. \(\textit {Methods:}\) We conducted a systematic review of articles published between 1980 and February 2015 using the databases PsychInfo and PubMed. \(\textit {Results:}\) The systematic search resulted in 41 eligible studies. Only 4 studies investigated smoking-related cognitions as putative mediators in the association between parental and youth smoking. The synthesis of evidence showed a mix of significant and non-significant associations between parental smoking and smoking-related cognitions among youth. A majority of results reported positive associations even when non-significant findings were found. However, studies that report an effect suggest that the effect may be quite modest. \(\textit {Conclusion:}\) Empirical evidence does not confirm the commonly applied assertions of social learning theories that parental smoking increases the risk of youth smoking through the development of favourable smoking-related cognitions. Methodological and theoretical aspects that might explain the lack of consistent findings are discussed.