Emily Hartung, Sarah Higbee, Jordan Sgro, Sarah Hanni, Wendy Kohlmann, Maija Reblin,
Chelsea Romney, and Angie Willoughby, Brigham Young University
Social and Behavioral Sciences
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second leading cause of cancer death in the US and individuals with a family history of CRC are at increased risk of the disease. Regular colorectal cancer screening can detect cancers earlier when they may be curable and healthier eating and weight reduction can reduce the risk of disease diagnosis. Social influence (SI) from significant others, defined as support and encouragement to promote health behaviors, has been included in some theoretical models as a factor that may encourage individuals to comply with cancer screening guidelines and lifestyle behaviors. As such, family support may influence CRC screening participation and healthier behaviors but less is known regarding the influence of spouses specifically. Research has consistently shown that marriage is beneficial for one’s health, and one mechanism that has been put forward for the “healthy marriage” effect is that spouses monitor and influence each other’s behavior. However, relationship quality may play a role in how influential the spouse may be. In this feasibility study we assessed levels of family SI (“Generally, I want to do what my family or spouse thinks I should do”), perceptions of spousal influence on behavior (i.e., smoking, exercise, doctor visits, cancer screenings) and relationship quality in 14 couples (M age=56) in which one spouse had a family history of CRC (n=28). Our analysis indicated better marital quality was significantly associated with increased SI (F=7.965, p=.009). Additionally, spousal influence on exercise behavior (F=4.6, p=.04) and coffee/caffeine consumption behavior (F=13.076, p=.04) was also associated with better relationship quality. However, most participants reported little-or-no influencing or being influenced by their spouse to do self-exams (88.5%), or to get age appropriate cancer screenings (57.7%). Although spouses appear to exert some influence on lifestyle behaviors, not enough influence is being exerted for cancer screening behaviors.