Cancer information overload: Discriminant validity and relationship to sun safe behaviors.
Jakob D Jensen, Manusheela Pokharel, Nick Carcioppolo and 3 others
PMID 31522897WHAT IT FOUND
U.S. adults who reported more cancer information overload also reported more tanning, fewer annual checkups, and lower sun safe knowledge.
The pattern varied by sex, race, education, and skin cancer risk.
Key findings
01The cancer information overload score was distinct from reactance, information avoidance, and defensive avoidance, because none of the variables loaded higher than .61.
02Higher cancer information overload was associated with more tanning bed use, outdoor tanning, and hat wearing, and with fewer annual checkups and lower sun safe knowledge.
03The pattern differed by subgroup: among females, higher overload was associated with less sunscreen use, less sunscreen reapplication, and fewer annual checkups; among males, it was associated with more tanning bed use and several protective behaviors.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The survey was cross-sectional, so it cannot show which variable came first. Participants were recruited from an online panel and were more likely to be White and highly educated than the U.S. population, so the results may not generalize. Behaviors were self-reported, not directly assessed. The cancer information overload measure was not skin cancer specific, while the avoidance measures were focused on skin cancer information. Some relationships were small, even when statistically significant.
Declared interests
The paper is listed as supported by NIH extramural research. No author competing-interest declaration is provided.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that reducing cancer information overload will improve sun safe behavior. This cross-sectional survey measured self-reported associations, so it cannot show that overload causes tanning, missed checkups, or lower knowledge.