Exploring the relationships among spiritual well-being, quality of life, and psychological adjustment in women with breast cancer

✍ Scribed by Sian P. Cotton; Ellen G. Levine; Cory M. Fitzpatrick; Kristin H. Dold; Elisabeth Targ

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 70 KB
• Volume: 8
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1057-9249
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-1611(199909/10)8:5<429::aid-pon420>3.0.co;2-p

✦ Synopsis

This study examined the relationships among spiritual well-being, quality of life, and psychological adjustment in 142 women diagnosed with breast cancer who were participating in a larger study designed to compare the efficacy of two psychosocial support programs. Participants were given a set of questionnaires that measured spiritual well-being, quality of life, and adjustment to cancer. Results revealed a positive correlation between spiritual well-being and quality of life, as well as significant correlations between spiritual well-being and specific adjustment styles (e.g. fighting spirit). There was also a negative correlation between quality of life and use of a helpless/hopeless adjustment style, and a positive correlation between quality of life and fatalism. In regression analyses, after controlling for demographic variables and adjustment styles, spiritual well-being contributed very little additional variance in quality of life. These findings suggest that while spiritual well-being is correlated with both quality of life and psychological adjustment, the relationships among these variables are more complex and perhaps indirect than previously considered.