Religious Coping and Posttraumatic Growth Among Family Caregivers of Cancer Patients in India

Abstract

Growing attention has focused on relationships between religious coping and health outcomes among cancer patients. However, surprisingly little is known about religious coping among family caregivers. Moreover, few studies have been conducted outside of Western developed nations. This investigation evaluated family caregivers in Pune, India. The authors examined discrete dimensions of cancer-specific religious coping, and their associations with posttraumatic growth, among families at a similar phase of treatment. As hypothesized, posttraumatic growth was associated with increased use of positive religious coping strategies and diminished use of negative coping strategies. In multivariate analyses, the strongest predictors were benevolent religious reappraisals and punishing God reappraisals. Findings underscore the importance of meaning-focused religious coping.

KEYWORDS:

• religious coping
• post-traumatic growth
• cancer
• India

This study was supported in part by the College of Professional Studies Summer Research Fellow Grant at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock.