The Hot Flush Beliefs Scale: a tool for assessing thoughts and beliefs associated with the experience of menopausal hot flushes and night sweats

Abstract

Objectives: Approximately 15-20% of women experience their hot flushes and night sweats as problematic. There is some evidence that cognitive appraisals may help explain individual variation, and that cognitive behaviour therapy can alleviate related distress. This paper describes the development of the Hot Flush Beliefs Scale (HFBS), a questionnaire to assess women's appraisals, and reports on the reliability, validity and factor structure of the scale.

Methods: An initial pool of 63 items was generated from several sources: empirical literature, clinicians' views, and in-depth interviews, with the aim of reflecting common thoughts and beliefs about flushes and sweats. A total of 103 women, aged 41-64 years completed the initial measure. Principal components analysis and principal axis factoring were applied to the data, with both orthogonal and oblique rotation to determine the most coherent and interpretable solution.

Results: Exploratory factor analysis culminated in a 27-item measure comprising three dimensions: beliefs about self in social context; beliefs about coping with hot flushes; beliefs about coping with night sweats/sleep. The HFBS was internally consistent, with subscale alphas ranging from 0.78 to 0.93, and test-retest reliability 0.74-0.78. Validity was supported through correlations with other measures of mood and menopause beliefs.

Conclusions: Preliminary analysis of the HFBS reveals it to be a psychometrically sound instrument. The HFBS has the benefit of being grounded in women's experiences and shows initial promise as a tool to aid further clinical and theoretical understanding of the impact of hot flushes and night sweats.