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Gepubliceerd in:

01-10-2010

Effects of global meaning and illness-specific meaning on health outcomes among breast cancer patients

Auteurs: Allen C. Sherman, Stephanie Simonton, Umaira Latif, Lew Bracy

Gepubliceerd in: Journal of Behavioral Medicine | Uitgave 5/2010

Abstract

Growing attention has focused on meaning-making processes and their health correlates among cancer patients. However, much of this work is marked by conceptual and methodological limitations. The current study evaluated global meaning and theoretically distinct aspects of illness-specific meaning (i.e., seeking sense, found sense, seeking benefits, found benefits) among breast cancer survivors who had completed primary treatment. Health outcomes (i.e., emotional distress, health-related quality-of-life) were assessed 4 months later. Different facets of meaning had different longitudinal associations with outcomes. Findings underscore the importance of distinguishing among conceptually discrete dimensions of personal meaning.

vorige artikel Fatigue and physical disability in patients with multiple sclerosis: a structural equation modeling approach

volgende artikel Psychological effects and mediators of a group multi-component program for breast cancer survivors

There are also well recognized circumstances in which high global meaning might confer vulnerability rather than resilience. We would expect to find greater difficulties if strongly or rigidly held global commitments, beliefs, and goals were unable to assimilate the changes wrought by serious illness, precipitating a collapse of basic belief systems (e.g., Janoff-Bulman and Frantz 1997; Park and Folkman 1997). However, it seems that this situation can best be evaluated not by measuring global meaning, but rather by assessing violations of global meaning (i.e., disruptions in specific beliefs and goals (Cann et al. 2009; Park et al. 2008). Otherwise, a rich sense of global meaning (purpose and commitment), maintained through the course of a medical crisis, may contribute to more favorable adjustment.

Time since diagnosis was not significantly related to any of the outcomes. Nonetheless, all of the regression analyses were repeated including this variable as a covariate. Only one finding was altered; the model predicting distress from global meaning was no longer significant.

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Titel: Effects of global meaning and illness-specific meaning on health outcomes among breast cancer patients
Auteurs: Allen C. Sherman
Stephanie Simonton
Umaira Latif
Lew Bracy
Publicatiedatum: 01-10-2010
Uitgeverij: Springer US
Gepubliceerd in: Journal of Behavioral Medicine / Uitgave 5/2010
Print ISSN: 0160-7715
Elektronisch ISSN: 1573-3521
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10865-010-9267-7

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