Breast Cancer Perception Scale: Psychometric Development Study.

Area of Science:

• Health Psychology
• Behavioral Science
• Oncology

Background:

• Breast cancer prevention behaviors are influenced by individual perceptions.
• The Health Belief Model provides a theoretical framework for understanding health behaviors.
• A validated scale is needed to measure perceptions related to breast cancer.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop the Breast Cancer Perception Scale (BCPS) based on the Health Belief Model.
• To conduct a psychometric analysis of the developed scale.
• To establish the validity and reliability of the BCPS for measuring breast cancer-related perceptions.

Main Methods:

• Methodological design involving 572 women aged 20 and above, without a breast cancer diagnosis.
• Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA) to determine scale structure and items.
• Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) to validate the proposed model.
• Reliability analysis using Cronbach's alpha.

Main Results:

• The Breast Cancer Perception Scale consists of 24 items across six sub-dimensions: perceived knowledge, perceived treatment belief, perceived need for a health check, perceived stigma, perceived fear, and perceived risk.
• These sub-dimensions explain 74.36% of the total variance.
• Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed an acceptable model fit, with factor loadings ranging from 0.655 to 0.998.
• Cronbach's alpha coefficients for the sub-dimensions ranged from 0.815 to 0.950, indicating good reliability.

Conclusions:

• The Breast Cancer Perception Scale is a valid and reliable instrument for assessing multi-dimensional aspects of breast cancer perception in women.
• The scale can be utilized to explore associations with healthy lifestyle behaviors, diagnostic behaviors, family history, traumatic experiences, and knowledge levels.
• Findings support the use of the BCPS in research and clinical settings to better understand and address factors influencing breast cancer prevention and outcomes.