title: Personal factors influencing agreement between expert and self-reported assessments of an occupational exposure.
abstract: This study aimed to identify personal factors associated with expert and respondent agreement on past occupational exposure. Epidemiologic data was collected from 1995 to 1998 in a community-based, case-control study of prostate cancer. Using longest jobs and excluding agreement on "never" exposure, self-reported and expert estimates of ever/ never exposure, by skin or ingestion, to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were compared. Agreement between respondents and the expert was 53.9 percent (N=1,038), with overreporting being more common than underreporting relative to the expert (31.8 percent versus 14.4 percent). In multiple logistic regression models, white-collar occupational status was significantly associated with overreporting (odds ratio [OR] = 0.142; 95 percent confidence interval [CI]: 0.095-0.211; blue-collar versus white-collar), while age was associated with underreporting (OR=1.077; 95 percent CI: 1.043-1.112; one-year increase). Neither job satisfaction nor risk perception appeared to confound other associations. In future studies, overreporting by white-collar workers might be avoided by providing clearer definitions of exposure, whereas elderly respondents may require aids to enhance exposure recall.
authors.affiliation: Tom Baker Cancer Centre, Calgary, Alberta, Canada T2N 4N2. heathnei@cancerboard.ab.ca
authors.forename: Heather K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Neilson
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sass-Kortsak
authors.forename: W Y Wendy
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: Lou
authors.forename: James T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Purdham
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D006801:Humans; D006841:Hydrocarbons, Aromatic / Q000633:toxicity*; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D008875:Middle Aged; D016273:Occupational Exposure; D009864:Ontario / Q000453:epidemiology; D011471:Prostatic Neoplasms / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012042:Registries; D012307:Risk Factors; D012650:Self Disclosure; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D006841:Hydrocarbons, Aromatic