The data were drawn from a larger survey study of skin cancer risk, prevention, and
surveillance behaviors among 788 Hispanic adults. Prior papers have focused on behaviors
among the full study sample 13], 14]. The present study focuses on the participants who reported working outdoors, and
the analyses reported in this paper have not been previously published.
Procedure and participants
A detailed description of the study procedures is available elsewhere 13]. In brief, on receiving ethics approval from the Rutgers Health Sciences Institutional
Review Board, participants were recruited from KnowledgePanel Latino
SM
, which is a nationally representative web panel of US Hispanic adults (administered
by GfK Custom Research). Individuals are recruited to the panel using random-digit
dialing and address-based sampling, and are provided with a cost-free laptop and Internet
access, if necessary. Panel members residing in five southern and western states (Arizona,
California, Florida, New Mexico, or Texas) were selected at random and invited via
email to take part in an online survey in either English or Spanish. Informed consent
was obtained from all individual participants included in the study. For the current
study, we focused on the 149 individuals (from the full sample of 788) who reported
working in a job that required them to be outdoors in the sun.
Measures
Sociodemographic factors
Participants indicated their gender, age, level of education, linguistic acculturation,
Hispanic heritage, and state of residence. Latitude of residence (i.e., degrees north
of the equator) was also calculated for participants, based on their home address.
Melanoma risk factors
Objective risk for melanoma was assessed using eight questions regarding melanoma
risk factors (e.g., naturally red or blonde hair, history of severe sunburn with blisters,
presence of freckles and moles, fair untanned skin). The total number of melanoma
risk factors (0–8) was calculated for each participant.
Perceived skin cancer risk
Two items adapted from prior research measured perceptions of skin cancer risk [e.g.,
“If I don’t protect my skin from the sun, I feel that my chances of getting skin cancer
in my lifetime are highâ€; 15]. Participants answered using a 5-point response scale from strongly disagree to strongly agree and responses were averaged for the two items (Cronbach’s alpha = .93).
Skin cancer knowledge
Skin cancer knowledge was assessed using eight true–false items adapted from prior
research 16], 17]. The total number of correct items was calculated for each participant.
Outdoor work
Participants reported the average number of hours per week that they spend working
outside in the sun. An open-ended question asked participants to report the type of
work they do outside. Participants also indicated which areas of the body (i.e., face
and neck, arms, legs, and trunk of body) are covered by clothing or a hat when working
outside in the sun.
Occupational sunscreen use
Participants completed a standard survey item (using a 5-point response scale from
ever to always) regarding the frequency with which they use sunscreen when engaged in outdoor work
in the sun. Due to the distribution of responses (see below), the variable was recoded
to represent infrequent (ever or rarely) versus regular sunscreen use (sometimes, often, or always).
Statistical analysis
Descriptive statistics were used to describe the sample. Univariable and multivariable
logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine correlates of occupational
sunscreen use (coded as never/rarely vs. at least sometimes). As described elsewhere
13], the statistical analyses were weighted to adjust for numerous factors, including
the probability of panel selection and potential post-stratification non-response
and non-coverage biases. A cut-off of p  0.05 was used to determine statistical significance for all analyses.