Why people fail to participate in annual skin cancer screening: creation of the perceptions of annual skin cancer screening scale (PASCSS)

Abstract Objectives Many studies show that most people, even at-risk individuals, do not undergo routine clinical skin cancer screening, and many questions remain unanswered regarding the participation (or lack thereof) in annual skin cancer screening. Perhaps the largest unanswered question is the most essential: why do people fail to undergo annual skin cancer screening? We provide an avenue to answer this question by creating the Perceptions of Annual Skin Cancer Screening Scale (PASCSS). Methods In Study 1, we conduct a qualitative investigation to identify potential scale dimensions and items (n=233). In Study 2, we test the validity and psychometric properties of our initial item list via exploratory factor analysis (n=406). In Study 3, we further test the psychometric properties of our item list via confirmatory factor analysis (n=587). Results These three studies provide strong support for the validity and psychometric properties of our item list, resulting in the PASCSS. The PASCSS includes 48 items and 12 dimensions that each represent unique perceptions regarding annual skin cancer screening. Conclusions We encourage future authors to utilize the PASCSS to identify those most at risk for failing to participate in annual skin cancer screening as well as develop adaptive interventions that can target these participants.