Ford, Martelle 
ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6564-8252
(2017)
Participation in Cancer Screening: The Role of Geographic Location and Consideration of Future Consequences.
Honours thesis,
University of Southern Queensland.
(Unpublished)
Abstract
In Australia, prior to the age of 85, one in two people will be diagnosed with cancer, with an estimated 134,000 new cases diagnosed in 2017. Australian national data indicates geographical disparities in cancer incidence and survival; with mortality higher in some rural areas. Early detection is vital to increasing survival rates, and screening programs such as BreastScreen Australia and the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program (NBCSP) have demonstrated success in detecting cancer early. Unfortunately, screening uptake rates are lower than optimal, particularly in rural areas. Rates are not explained through service access alone, and to date, limited research has focused on identifying individual cognitive processes that motivate cancer screening participation. The construct consideration of future consequences has been associated with health behaviours including exercise, nutrition, and screening. This study aimed to identify whether low consideration of future consequences (CFC) was related to screening participation, and whether this differs across geographic location. A total of 216 older adults participated by completing the Consideration of Future Consequences Scale and questions related to screening participation. It was hypothesised that lower CFC would be associated with lower cancer screening participation, and this relationship would be moderated by geographic location. The results showed that the relationship between CFC and participation in bowel cancer screening was moderated by geographic location, only when comparing rural and metropolitan participants. Study findings may indicate that future bowel cancer screening interventions could be more effective if explicitly targeted towards this individual cognitive process, especially for individuals in rural areas.
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| Item Type: | Thesis (Non-Research) (Honours) |
|---|---|
| Item Status: | Live Archive |
| Additional Information: | Current UniSQ staff and students can request access to this thesis. Please email research.repository@unisq.edu.au with a subject line of SEAR thesis request and provide: Name of the thesis requested and Your name and UniSQ email address |
| Faculty/School / Institute/Centre: | Historic - Faculty of Health, Engineering and Sciences - School of Psychology and Counselling (1 Jan 2015 - 31 Dec 2021) |
| Supervisors: | Sonja March; Fiona Crawford-Williams |
| Qualification: | Bachelor of Science (Honours) |
| Date Deposited: | 20 Aug 2025 01:41 |
| Last Modified: | 20 Aug 2025 01:41 |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | breast cancer, bowel cancer, national cancer screening programs, consideration of future consequences, geographic disparity. |
| Fields of Research (2008): | 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 1799 Other Psychology and Cognitive Sciences > 179999 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences not elsewhere classified |
| Fields of Research (2020): | 52 PSYCHOLOGY > 5299 Other psychology > 529999 Other psychology not elsewhere classified |
| URI: | https://sear.unisq.edu.au/id/eprint/52326 |
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