Reappraising cancer: life priorities and growth

Juliane Strack*, Paulo Lopes, Manfred Gaspar

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

10 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Background: People who have undergone traumatic life experiences such as cancer often report a new meaning and greater appreciation of life. These subjectively experienced positive changes are referred to as posttraumatic growth (PTG). The present study investigated correlates of PTG in cancer patients. Patients and Methods: 128 cancer patients at a rehabilitation clinic in Germany completed self-report questionnaires. Results: Cognitive reappraisal of emotion, gratitude finding, and openness to experience correlated with PTG. Patients also reported different priorities in life after cancer, reflecting more present-oriented and intrinsic concerns. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that reappraising emotions and adjusting life priorities may help cancer patients to experience PTG by facilitating emotion-focused coping and reframing an apparently adverse situation as a positive experience.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)369-374
Number of pages6
JournalOnkologie
Volume33
Issue number7
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jun 2010

Keywords

  • Emotion
  • Emotion regulation
  • Gratitude
  • Posttraumatic growth
  • Reappraisal

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