Health beliefs and breast self-examination in a sample of Turkish women academicians in a university.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to evaluate health beliefs and BSE behavior of female academicians in a Turkish university.


METHODS
This descriptive study was conducted at various faculties located in Ege University, Izmir, Turkey, in 2005. The sample consisted of 224 female academicians. Data were collected using a self-administered questionnaire and the Turkish version of Champion's Health Belief Model Scales (HBM). Descriptive statistics, t-test and Mann Whitney u analysis were conducted.


RESULTS
The percentage of participants who regularly performed BSE was 27.7 %. Benefits and health motivation related to BSE ranked either first or second, along with confidence. Perceived barriers to BSE had the lowest item mean subscale score in academicians. Single academicians perceived susceptibility and seriousness higher than their married counterparts. Family history of breast cancer of participants affected their health beliefs subscale.


CONCLUSIONS
BSE performance among participants was more likely in women academicians who exhibited higher confidence and those who perceived fewer barriers related to BSE performance, complying with the conceptual structure of the HBM. Therefore, it is recommended that in order to increase the rates of regular breast cancer screening, mass health protective programs based on the HBM should be executed for women.
Ceber
Esin
E
Ege University Izmir Ataturk School of Health, Bornova/Izmir, Turkey. esin.ceber@ege.edu.tr
Yücel
Ummahan
U
Mermer
Gülengül
G
Ozentürk
Gülsün
G
D000328:Adult; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*; D016504:Breast Self-Examination; D055088:Early Detection of Cancer; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014421:Turkey; D014495:Universities