Validity and reliability study of the scale of factors affecting women' s breast cancer prevention behaviors

Preventive behaviors of breast cancer have a significant impact on women' s health. Despite the benefits of preventive behaviours related to breast cancer, it has not been used as routine care for healthy women. A reliable and valid scale is required to assess this health problem. The aim of this study was to determine the validity and reliability of the Turkish version by adapting the scale to determine the factors affecting the breast cancer prevention behaviors of women. The study was conducted in Adıyaman between July 1 and December 31, 2018. The population of the study consisted of women registered in Family Health Center No 7 and the sample included 190 women aged 30 and over, who agreed to participate in the study, could be contacted, were at least literate, and had no history of breast cancer. The sample with the specified characteristics were selected from the women who were registered and applied to the center for any reason or who have been visited at home. As a data collection tool, Personal Information Form containing women' s introductory information and Scale of Factors Affecting Women's Breast Cancer Prevention Behaviors (MEKÖD) were used. The data of the study was evaluated with SPSS 22.0 package program on computer. For the validity and reliability of the study, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, reliability and normality analyses were performed. Student t test and Anova test were used for the analysis of the data showing the parametric distribution in the sample application, and Tukey' s HSD test was used for the analysis of intra-group differences. The results showed that this scale is a valid and reliable tool for evaluating the factors affecting women's breast cancer prevention behaviors both in practice and in future studies. Among the participants, divorced / widowed, health-insured women with good income level, breast self-examination (BSE) training, performing BSE and clinical breast examination (CBE) were found to be more positive in breast cancer prevention behaviours. Keywords: Breast Cancer, Preventive Behaviors, ASSISTS, Nurse