The mediating role of coping modes between illness perception and posttraumatic growth among patients with breast cancer

Abstract

Objective To explore the mediating role of coping modes between illness perception and posttraumatic growth among patients with breast cancer. Methods Totally 300 patients with breast cancer were investigated with the posttraumatic growth inventory, brief illness perception questionnaire and medical coping modes questionnaire. Results The total score of illness perception was 40.77±6.85.The scores of confrontation coping style, avoidance coping style and resignation coping style were 19.42±3.51, 17.78±2.79, 8.64±3.35. The total score of posttraumatic growth was 57.38±10.48. Illness perception was negatively correlated with posttraumatic growth (r=-0.743), confrontation(r=-0.568) and avoidance (r=-0.621), positively related with resignation(r=0.727). Posttraumatic growth was positively correlated with confrontation and avoidance (r=0.729, r=0.657), but negatively correlated with resignation(r=-0.757)(P<0.01). Coping modes had a partial mediating effect on the relationship between illness perception and posttraumatic growth. The total mediation effect value was 0.428, and the mediation effect was 57.60%, while confrontation and resignation mediation effect value were -0.191 and -0.207, and the mediation effect were 25.70% and 27.86%.But there was no statistical significance in avoidance mediation (effect value was -0.030 and the mediation effect was 4.04%). Conclusion Confrontation and resignation coping modes play a role multiple mediation effects between illness perception and posttraumatic growth. Key words: Breast cancer; Posttraumatic growth; Illness perception; Coping modes