Patterns of Coping,Flexibility in Coping and Psychological Distress in Women Diagnosed with Breast Cancer

Greek women diagnosed with breast cancer reported on their coping efforts and levels of distress the day before surgery, 3 days after surgery, and 3 months later. Acceptance and humor were negatively related to distress at all three time points, whereas denial and emotional expression were positively related to distress post-surgery and 3 months later. The relationship between patterns of coping and distress was also examined. Specifically, participants who used emotion-focused engagement coping at pre-surgery, that is, acceptance or emotional expression combined with social support, experienced less distress 3 months later than participants who did not use any emotion-focused engagement coping. Finally, flexibility, defined as the use of multiple coping strategies, was found to negatively predict distress. The results indicate that pre-surgery use of emotion-focused engagement coping can be adaptive and that the adaptiveness of each strategy may vary as the stressor evolves.

Pagona RoussiEmail: