Psychosocial Barriers to Cervical Cancer Screening: Concerns With Self-presentation and Social Evaluation1

The incidence of cervical cancer has decreased over 70% in the last several decades due in large part to the Papanicolaou (Pap) test. Despite the acknowledged efficacy of this test, however, many women do not receive cervical screening. The present study investigated the contributions of individual differences in concerns with self-presentation and social evaluation to the prediction of intentions and behavior involving cervical screening. Eighty-two Caucasian women completed measures of social anxiety, physique anxiety, public and private self-consciousness, fear of negative evaluation, and self-esteem, in addition to questions assessing their knowledge and behavior regarding cervical screening. Social anxiety significantly predicted intention to receive cervical screening for a medical reason, as well as the frequency with which the women actually received gynecological examinations. Physique anxiety accounted for a significant percentage of the variance in women's likelihood of receiving cervical screening within the next year. Interpersonal aspects of the gynecological exam, as well as implications of the findings for gynecological practice are discussed.