ABSTRACT
ᴥ SUMMARY. This study aimed at pilot-testing a new screening tool for assessing risk perception of and hesitancy about anti-COVID-19 in patients diagnosed with cancer. We recruited consecutive cancer patients (n = 356) who were either in treatment or follow-up. All the participants completed several measures of risk perception, confidence in safeguards, treatment adherence, and psychosocial distress. Scree plot and parallel analysis suggest a unifactorial structure (explained variance = 47.816%). The total scale was found a reliable 7-item measure (Cronbach’s a = .806;McDonald’s Ω= .810). Correlations and comparisons to other measures confirmed concurrent and predictive validity. The new measure reports a moderate correlation (r = .410;p<.001) with treatment non-adherence, whereas the correlation with distress was not significant. In conclusion, the new measure seems to be a reliable and valid tool for assessing risk anti-COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy in patients diagnosed with cancer. Further research is needed to confirm the unifactorial structure or better understand the underlying psychological mechanisms of vaccine hesitancy. © 2021, Giunti Psychometrics. All rights reserved.