6533b7d2fe1ef96bd125f6f5

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Adaptation of the Body Image after Breast Cancer Questionnaire in the Polish context: factorial structure and validity of the scale

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<b>Background</b><br /> Valid assessment of body image is salient in therapy and rehabilitation of women suffering from breast cancer. Adequate instruments are still lacking in this domain. To overcome this limitation two aims were formulated in the study. First, we tested the factorial structure of the Body Image after Breast Cancer Questionnaire (BIBCQ) developed by Baxter (1998) in Canada, in the Polish context. Then, we tested the construct validity of the scale. The scale is based on a multidimensional concept of the body image of chronically ill individuals proposed by Vamos (1993).<br /> <br /> <b>Participants and procedure</b><br /> A group of 270 women at the mean age of 55 (range of 23-81) with breast cancer who underwent conservation, mastectomy, or lumpectomy surgery was sampled in the Amazonki community.<br /> <br /> <b>Results</b><br /> Confirmatory factor analysis was used to test the factorial structure of the instrument. To test the convergent validity, scales assessing body self, body image, self-esteem, and depression were used. Divergent validity was analyzed in the context of the social desirability construct. Discriminant validity was based on comparisons between women who had undergone lumpectomy or mastectomy surgery. The results showed that within two out of six subscales proposed by Baxter, two additional subscales had to be distinguished. However, some differences in comparisons with previous validation studies were also found.<br /> <br /> <b>Conclusions</b><br /> The BIBCQ scale was found to be a valid multidimensional tool of body image assessment in the Polish context. The results are discussed in terms of cross-cultural differences in body image perception in breast cancer patients and guidelines for the scale’s implementation in the Polish context.