title: Assessment of self-efficacy and coping with cancer: development and validation of the cancer behavior inventory.
abstract: This article reports the development of a measure of self-efficacy for coping with cancer. Items culled from a variety of sources were chosen for inclusion in the Cancer Behavior Inventory (CBI) based on the psychometric properties of the items and the fit of the items in a factor structure. Factor analysis on a group of 502 persons with cancer yielded 6 factors: (a) Maintenance of Activity and Independence (alpha = .89), (b) Coping With Treatment-Related Side Effects (alpha = .88), (c) Accepting Cancer/Maintaining Positive Attitude (alpha = .87), (d) Seeking and Understanding Medical Information (alpha = .88), (e) Affective Regulation (alpha = .75), and (f) Seeking Support (alpha = .77). Cronbach's alpha for the entire measure was .96, and correlations with other measures supported its validity. The CBI may be useful for research and clinical practice.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Notre Dame, Indiana 46556, USA. merluzzi.1@nd.edu
authors.forename: T V
authors.initials: TV
authors.lastname: Merluzzi
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Martinez Sanchez
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001294:Attitude to Health; D017281:Cost of Illness; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology*; D011446:Prospective Studies; D011591:Psychology, Medical / Q000379:methods*; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012494:Sampling Studies; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012944:Social Support