ROLE OF HEALTH LOCUS OF CONTROL BELIEFS IN CANCER SCREENING OF ELDERLY HISPANIC WOMEN

This study examined the health locus of control beliefs of elderly His panic women and relation between frequency of breast self-examination (BSE), attention to health-related information, and recency of Pap sme ar and physician breast examination. As hypothesized, holding a belief that health outcomes are controlled by oneself (internal control) was positively related to screening behaviors over which one has a high d egree of personal control, such as frequency of BSE and attention to h ealth-related information. Belief that medical professionals control h ealth outcomes was positively related to physician-dependent screening activities, such as recency of Pap smear and physician breast exam. T he findings confirm the specificity of association between health cont rol beliefs and preventive behaviors and demonstrate the importance of these beliefs in medical screening by Hispanic women.