Importance of fatalism in understanding mammography screening in rural elderly women

This study examined the relationship between demographic factors and other correlates of fatalism,, and assessed the impact of fatalistic beliefs on t he participation in breast cancer screening in rural women. The subjects we re 220 women aged 50 and over recruited from 6 large rural counties in Sout h Carolina. Data were collected using a demographic questionnaire and the r evised Powe Fatalism inventory. Results show significant associations betwe en fatalism and increased age (p = 0.005), race (p = 0.0001), doctor recomm endation (p = .0034) and decreased educational level (p = 0.001). Fatalism was associated with noncompliance with mammography screening in univariate analysis among African-American women (OR = .362; 95% CI: 1.11, 11.8). Afte r adjusting for possible confounders (age, education, and doctor recommenda tion), fatalism was not significantly associated with noncompliance with sc reening. These results illustrate age, race, and education may be important predictors of fatalism and that fatalism may be one barrier that has previ ously gone unmeasured and unchallenged in understanding screening behavior in older women.