Dispositional optimism, self-efficacy, and health beliefs as predictors of breast self-examination.

This cross-sectional study examined relationships among predictors of breast self-examination (BSE) derived from the Health Belief Model and behavioral self-regulation theory. Subjects were 427 gynecology outpatients. Although 64% indicated that they had practiced BSE at least once during the past year, only 27% indicated they practiced BSE monthly. The majority of the subjects knew about most of the recommended BSE steps. The most frequently endorsed reasons for completing BSE were early detection, recommendation from a doctor, and peace of mind. The most frequently endorsed barrier was forgetting/being too busy. Multivariate analysis showed that several psychological variables--including reasons for doing BSE, self-efficacy, and barriers to doing BSE--were related to frequency of BSE. Overall, the variables in this model accounted for about 37% of the variance in BSE frequency.