Hope and relationship dynamics among couples faced with their child's cancer: A dyadic phenomenological interpretative analysis

Purpose

The onset of paediatric cancer leads to changes in the functioning of the parental couple. The interactions and interdependence between partners affect their individual and dyadic adjustments. Hope can enable parents to cope with difficulties and alleviate their distress. The aim of this study is to explore how both partners experience their relationship dynamics and hope within the couple.

Method

This qualitative study focused on 7 couples whose child was in remission from cancer; each parent was interviewed separately. The semi-structured interviews were subjected to interpretative phenomenological analysis.

Results

Three themes were found to characterise the experiences of couples faced with their child's cancer. “Captain and first mate" emphasises the gendered and hierarchical distribution of roles based on the analogy of a crew struggling against the threat of cancer. “The emotional compass" focuses on how emotions guide each partner's attempts to meet their own need for emotional expression and that of their partner. "In the same boat, with divergent hope sails" reflects the complex and diverse ways in which hope and forms of hope are expressed, perceived as a resource which is often precious, sometimes viewed as unthinkable because it reflects the violence associated with the despair of the situation and transferred from one parent to the other.

Discussion

These findings highlight the need to focus on the organisation of role, the interaction of emotional needs and the dynamics of hope within parental dyads to optimise the management of couples faced with their child's cancer.