Year: 2003
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: The aim of the current study was to test and explore the relationship between social support and posttraumatic growth, using both quantitative and qualitative methods.One hundred and thirty five women who had been diagnosed with breast cancer at some point in the past (both survivors of breast cancer as well as women currently in treatment) were recruited through support organisations, newsletters and advertisements in newspapers.Participants completed a variety of self-report questionnaires of social support and posttraumatic growth, and provided short written accounts of the ways in which having breast cancer had changed their lives both positively and negatively.Results indicated that none of the social support measures included in this study were significantly correlated to posttraumatic growth.However, the written accounts of posttraumatic growth suggested that a complex relationship with social support may indeed exist, but that the nature of this relationship may elude traditional methods of quantitative examination.Additional analyses conducted raise the interesting possibility that ratings of change in social support over time may be related to posttraumatic growth, rather than absolute levels of social support per se.The question of whether posttraumatic growth reflects real change over time or adaptive distortions of change is explored in light of this finding, and recommendations for the nature and direction of future research are reviewed.I would firstly like to thank my wonderful supervisory committee, Dr.
Source: Summit (Simon Fraser University)
Author: Justine Diggens
Language: English
Topic: Cancer survivorship and care
Subfield: Oncology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W52068748