Skip to main content
Log in

The relationship of dispositional optimism, daily life stress, and domestic environment to coping methods used by cancer patients

  • Published:
Journal of Behavioral Medicine Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The relationship of dispositional optimism, daily life stress, and domestic environment to two types of coping methods was examined in a group of 94 cancer patients. As expected, dispositional optimism and domestic environment made significant contributions to the prediction of avoidance coping. Dispositional optimism contributed significantly to the prediction of active-behavioral coping. Specifically, a significant positive relationship was obtained between active-behavioral coping and optimism. A significant positive relationship also was found between avoidance coping and both daily stress and domestic environment. Avoidance coping was negatively related to dispositional optimism. In multivariate analyses, gender and disease-related variables did not make significant contributions to the prediction of coping method. Suggestions for future research were made.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Andreason, N. J. C., Noyles, R., Jr., and Hartford, C. E. (1972). Factors influencing adjustment of burn patients during hospitalization.Psychosom. Med. 34: 517–525.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Berkman, L., and Syme, S. L. (1979). Social networks, host resistance, and mortality: A nine-year follow-up study of Alameda County residents.Am. J. Epidemiol. 109: 186–204.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Billings, A. G., and Moos, R. H. (1981). The role of coping responses and social resources in attenuating the stress of life events.J. Behav. Med. 4: 139–157.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Billings, A. G., and Moos, R. H. (1984). Coping, stress, and social resources among adults with unipolar depression.J. Personal. Soc. Psychol. 46: 877–891.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bloom, J. R. (1982). Social support, accommodation to stress, and adjustment to mastectomy.Soc. Sci. Med. 16: 1329–1338.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Boyd, I., Yeager, M., and McMillan, M. (1973). Personality styles in the post-operative course.Psychosom. Med. 35: 23–40.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Carver, C. S., and Scheier, M. F. (1981).Attention and Self-Regulation: A Control-Theory Approach to Human Behavior, Springer-Verlag, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carver, C. S., and Scheier, M. F. (1982a). Control theory: A useful framework for conceptualizing human behavior.Psychol. Bull. 92: 111–135.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Carver, C. S., and Scheier, M. F. (1982b). Outcome expectancy, locus of attribution for expectancy and self-directed attention as determinants of evaluations and performance.J. Exp. Soc. Psychol. 18: 184–200.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, F., and Lazarus, R. S. (1973). Active coping processes, coping dispositions, and recovery from surgery.Psychosom. Med. 35: 375–387.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cohen, F., and Lazarus, R. S. (1983). Coping and adaptation in health and illness. In Mechanic, D. (ed.),Handbook of Health, Health Care, and the Health Professions, Free Press, New York, pp. 608–635.

    Google Scholar 

  • DeLongis, A. (1985).The Relationship of Everyday Stress to Health and Well-Being: Inter- and Intraindividual Approaches; Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of California, Berkeley.

    Google Scholar 

  • DeLongis, A., Coyne, J. C., Dakof, G., Folkman, S., and Lazarus, R. S. (1982). Relationship of daily hassles, uplifts, and major life events to health status.Health Psychol. 1: 119–136.

    Google Scholar 

  • DeLongis, A., Folkman, S., and Lazarus, R. S. (1988). The impact of daily stress on health and mood: Psychological and social resources as mediators.J. Personal. Soc. Psychol. 54: 486–495.

    Google Scholar 

  • Derogatis, L. R., Abeloff, M. D., and Melisaratos, N. (1979). Psychological coping mechanisms and survival time in metastatic breast cancer.JAMA 242: 1504–1508.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Derogatis, L. R., and Lopez, M. C. (1983).The Psychosocial Adjustment to Illness Scale (PAIS and PAIS-SR): Administration, Scoring and Procedures Manual—I. John Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.

    Google Scholar 

  • DeMatteo, M. R., and Hays, R. (1981). Social support and serious illness. In Gottlieb, B. H. (ed.),Social Networks and Social Support in Community Mental Health, Sage, Beverly Hills, CA, pp. 117–148.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dohrenwend, B. S., and Dohrenwend, B. P. (eds.) (1984).Stressful Life Events: Their Nature and Effects, John Wiley & Sons, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Felton, B. J., and Revenson, T. A. (1984). Coping with chronic illness: A study of illness controllability and the influence of coping strategies on psychosocial adjustment.J. Consult. Clin. Psychol. 52: 343–353.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Folkman, S., and Lazarus, R. S. (1985). If it changes it must be a process: Study of emotion and coping during three stages of a college examination.J. Personal. Soc. Psychol. 48: 150–170.

    Google Scholar 

  • Friedman, L. C., Baer, P. E., Lewy, A., Lane, M., and Smith, F. E. (1988a). Predictors of psychosocial adjustment to breast cancer.J. Psychosoc. Oncol. 6: 75–94.

    Google Scholar 

  • Friedman, L. C., Baer, P. E., Nelson, D. V., Lane, M., Smith, F. E., and Dworkin, R. J. (1988b). Women with breast cancer: Perception of family functioning and adjustment to illness.Psychosom. Med. 50: 529–540.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Friedman, L. C., Nelson, D. V., Baer, P. E., Lane, M., and Smith, F. E. (1991). Adjustment to breast cancer: A replication study.J. Psychosoc. Oncol. 8: 27–40.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holahan, C. J., and Moos, R. H. (1985). Life stress and health: Personality, coping, and family support in stress resistance.J. Personal. Soc. Psychol. 49: 739–747.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holahan, C. J., and Moos, R. H. (1987). Personal and contextual determinants of coping strategies.J. Personal. Soc. Psychol. 52: 946–955.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holmes, T. H., and Rahe, R. H. (1967). The Social Readjustment Rating Scale.J. Psychosom. Res. 11: 213–218.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • House, J. S. (1981).Work Stress and Social Support, Addison-Wesley, Reading, MA.

    Google Scholar 

  • House, J. S., and Kahn, R. L. (1985). Measures and concepts of social support. In Cohen, S., and Syme, L. S. (eds.),Social Support and Health, Academic Press, Orlando, FL., pp. 83–108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jamison, K. R., Wellisch, D. K., and Pasnau, R. O. (1978). Psychosocial aspects of mastectomy. I. The man's perspective.Am. J. Psychial. 135: 432–436.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kanner, A. D., Coyne, J. C., Schaefer, C., and Lazarus, R. S. (1981). Comparison of two modes of stress measurement: Daily hassles and uplifts versus major life events.J. Behav. Med. 4: 1–23.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kaplan-DeNour, A. (1982). Psychosocial Adjustment to Illness Scale (PAIS): A study of chronic hemodialysis patients.J. Psychosom. Res. 26: 11–22.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lazarus, R. S., and Folkman, S. (1984).Stress, Appraisal, and Coping, Springer, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Litman, T. J. (1974). The family as a basic unit in health and medical care: A social-behavioral overview.Soc. Sci. Med. 8: 495–519.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Meyerowitz, B. E. (1980). Psychosocial correlates of breast cancer and its treatment.Psychol. Bull. 87: 108–131.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Morris, T., Greer, H. S., and White, P. (1977). Psychological and social adjustment to mastectomy: A two-year follow-up study.Cancer 40: 2381–2387.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Morrow, G. R., Chiarello, R. J., and Derogatis, L. R. (1978). A new scale for assessing patients' psychosocial adjustment to medical illness.Psychol. Med. 8: 605–610.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, D. V., Friedman, L. C., Baer, P. E., Lane, M., and Smith, F. E. (1989). Attitudes to cancer: Psychometric properties of fighting spirit and denial.J. Behav. Med. 12: 341–355.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pearlin, L. I., and Schoolar, C. (1978). The structure of coping.J. Health Soc. Behav. 19: 2–21.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Scheier, M. F., and Carver, C. S. (1985). Optimism, coping, and health: Assessment and implications of generalized outcome expectancies.Health Psychol. 4: 219–247.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Scheier, M. F., and Carver, C. S. (1987). Dispositional optimism and physical well-being: The influence of generalized outcome expectancies on health.J. Personal. 55: 169–210.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scheier, M. F., Matthews, K. A., Owens, J. F., Magovern, G. J., Lefebvre, R. C., Abbott, R. A., and Carver, C. S. (1989). Dispositional optimism and recovery from coronary artery bypass surgery The beneficial effects on physical and psychological well-being.J. Personal. Soc. Psychol. 57: 1024–1040.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scheier, M. F., Weintraub, J. K., and Carver, C. S. (1986). Coping with stress: Divergent strategies of optimists and pessimists.J. Personal Soc. Psychol. 51: 1257–1264.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schulz, R., and Rau, M. T. (1985). Social support through the life course. In Cohen, S., and Syme, L. S. (eds.),Social Support and Health, Academic Press, Orlando, FL, pp. 129–149.

    Google Scholar 

  • Silberfarb, P. M., and Greer, S. (1982). Psychological concomitants of cancer: Clinical aspects.Am. J. Psychother. 36: 470–478.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Silberfarb, P. M., Maurer, L. H., and Crouthamel, C. S. (1980). Psychosocial aspects of neoplastic disease. I. Functional status of breast cancer patients during different treatment regimens.Am. J. Psychiat. 137: 450–455.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Spiegel, D., Bloom, J. R., and Gottheil, E. (1983). Family environment as a predictor of adjustment to metastatic breast carcinoma.J. Psychosoc. Oncol. 1: 33–44.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weisman, A. D., and Worden, J. W. (1976–1977). The existential plight in cancer: Significance of the first 100 days.Int. J. Psychiat. Med. 7: 1–15.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wortman, C. B. (1984). Social support and the cancer patient.Cancer 53 (Suppl. 10): 2339–2360.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wortman, C. B., and Dunkel-Schetter, C. A. (1979). Interpersonal relationships and cancer: A theoretical analysis.J. Soc. Issues 35: 120–155.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Additional information

Support for this study was provided by a grant from the Fondren Foundation to Lois C. Friedman.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Friedman, L.C., Nelson, D.V., Baer, P.E. et al. The relationship of dispositional optimism, daily life stress, and domestic environment to coping methods used by cancer patients. J Behav Med 15, 127–141 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00848321

Download citation

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00848321

Key words

Navigation