Research assistants aged 18-20 in New Jersey, New York, and North Carolina were interviewed about their attempts to buy tobacco products. Among the findings: non-chain stores lacked consistency in verifying ages; however, retailer education, adoption of ID scanners and enforcement could increase consistency. “Training for underage buyers in research and compliance assessments should focus on ways to enhance data collectors’ confidence when making a purchase attempt, which may improve the validity of rate of sales to individuals under 21,” the authors recommended. Read the paper.