Development of a benefits and barriers scale for mammography utilization

The purpose of this study was to refine scales to measure Health Belief Model concepts of benefits and barriers using the context of mammography screening. Both scales used a summated Likert format with five response options. Items were first subjected to content analysis by national experts. Data were then collected from a random sample of 581 women who were 35 years or over. Retest data were gathered on a subset of women approximately 4-6 weeks later. Construct validity was established using confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory factor analysis with results confirming independence of constructs. Construct validity was also tested by developing hypotheses based on theoretical relationships. Cronbach alpha reliability coefficients for the benefits scale was 0.79 and for the barriers scale was 0.73. Suggestions for further revisions are offered.