Breast health promotion: behaviors of midlife women.

The breast is one of the leading sites of invasive cancer. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationships between health locus of control, perceived self-efficacy, demographic health characteristics, and the degree to which they explain the current and future practice of breast self-exam and mammography screening. Data were collected during 1992. Eighty-six women participating in a clinical breast exam and mammography screening program at an ambulatory women's center in a large metropolitan teaching hospital in the Midwest voluntarily completed four questionnaires. Hierarchical regression and discriminant analysis demonstrated that perceived self-efficacy was a significant predictor of health-promotion behavior, and health-promoting lifestyle and locus of control were the most influential predictors of intent for breast self-examination and ongoing mammography.