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A breast cancer fear scale: psychometric development
Victoria L Champion1, Celette Sugg Skinner, Usha Menon
1School of Nursing, Indiana University, USA. vchampio@iupui.edu
Journal of Health Psychology
|September 16, 2004
Summary
Fear of breast cancer screening negatively impacts participation. This study developed and validated a specific breast cancer fear scale, showing it reliably predicts mammography adherence.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Psychology
- Public Health
Background:
- Fear of breast cancer is linked to reduced screening participation.
- Previous fear measurements used limited, non-specific scales.
- A validated, specific scale for breast cancer fear is needed.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a reliable and specific fear scale for breast cancer.
- To assess the scale's construct validity and predictive power for mammography adherence.
Main Methods:
- Development of a novel breast cancer fear scale.
- Data from a large mammography adherence study used for validation.
- Factor analysis and regression analyses (linear and logistic) employed.
Main Results:
- The developed scale demonstrated high reliability (Cronbach's alpha = .91).
- Factor analysis confirmed all items loaded onto a single factor.
- The scale showed construct validity and predicted mammography adherence.
Conclusions:
- The new breast cancer fear scale is a valid and reliable instrument.
- This tool can be used to better understand and address fear's impact on screening.
- Further research can utilize this scale to improve breast cancer screening rates.