Abstract Background: Mounting evidence continues to demonstrate that nicotine dependence is a growing public health issue among current smokers. While duration of smoking, number of cigarettes smoked per day (CPD) and cessation attempts are common indicators of nicotine dependence, African Americans tend to smoke less cigarettes per day (CPD; 10 or less), initiate smoking at a later age and experience greater failed quit attempts, compared to whites, yet develop nicotine dependence. However, no previous study has examined the possibility that race differences in the social context which African Americans and non-Hispanic whites live may contribute to disparities and the persistence of nicotine dependence. Social class and immediate personal interactions occurs in various social contexts, including the living space, workplace, institutions or other physical environments. This project examines the contributions of demographic, behavioral and environmental factors as social contextual factors that contribute to smoking behavior and the persistence of nicotine dependence. Objective: We examined race disparities in nicotine dependence among 761 African American and white current smokers living in similar social and environmental risk exposures and compared these estimates to 1461 black and white current smokers in a national sample of adults aged 20 and over. Methods: Data was assessed from Exploring Health Disparities in Integrated Communities-Southwest Baltimore (EHDIC-SWB; 2003) and National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey (NHANES; 2001-2004) to determine if race disparities in nicotine dependence would be attenuated in EHDIC-SWB. Time to first cigarette was used to assess nicotine dependence. Logistic regression was used to assess the association between race and nicotine dependence, controlling for known confounders. Results: In multivariate analysis, race differences in nicotine dependence were greater among African-Americans in a representative sample of US adults. African Americans in a national sample have a lower odds of nicotine dependence (OR = 0.8; 95% CI 0.46, 0.93) compared to whites. However, no race difference were detected among participants in the EHDIC-SWB study (0.87; 95% CI 0.62, 1.22). Conclusions: Examination of social and environmental factors may reveal important insights into the nature of inequalities between black and white adults in health outcomes such as nicotine dependence. Our results highlight the importance of examining social contextual factors and suggest that the promotion of targeted interventions may reduce the prevalence of nicotine dependence among current smokers. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 101st Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2010 Apr 17-21; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2010;70(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 979.