Correlates of Adjustment Among Cancer Survivors

Abstract

This study examined demographic, clinical, and psycho-social correlates of adjustment among a sample of cancer survivors. Analyses concerning demographic and clinical variables indicated that being married, having a high income and level of education, and a positive perception of one's health was related to higher levels of adjustment; female survivors and survivors of breast cancer (versus prostate cancer) also reported higher levels of sexual adjustment. Analyses concerning psychosocial predictors of adjustment indicated that survivors who reported higher levels of social support, optimism, and meaning in life, and lower levels of avoidant-type coping exhibited better adjustment. A prediction model of adjustment indicated strong empirical support for a model depicting higher psychosocial adjustment as a function of higher levels of social support and meaning in life and lower levels of avoidant-type coping behaviors. Overall, the findings offer important information for understanding variables associated with adaptation to a cancer diagnosis and provide support for the usefulness of clinical services for survivors that provide social support, minimize the use of avoidant-type coping, and help them attain a sense of meaning from their illness.

Key Words:

• Survivorship
• structural equation modeling
• adjustment
• correlates