Abstract

Emotional distress suffuses the experience of cancer survivors and is associated with adverse outcomes. Emotional distress is a response to a circumstance, which threatens the stability of identity. Of the antecedents to emotional distress in cancer patients, symptom burden accounts for the greatest amount of variance. Qualitative studies in populations of cancer survivors have shown that identity affects the experience of emotional distress related to symptom burden. The purpose of this dissertation research was to measure the relationships among symptom burden, identity balance, and emotional distress by testing whether identity balance mediates the relationship between symptom burden and emotional distress in cancer survivors. The research study framework is structured by a proposed path model, which displays the mediated relationship of identity balance, symptom burden and emotional distress. A cross sectional survey design was used, and mediation analysis was conducted to measure the relationships among the variables. Several cancer centers in the state of Colorado, U.S. were used to disseminate the questionnaire and a link to an online version of the survey was also offered. Data were collected using hard copy questionnaires and SurveyMonkey. Analysis of the mediated effect was conducted using SPSS. Results showed a small partial mediation effect of Identity Balance on the relationship between Symptom Burden and Emotional Distress.

Description

This dissertation has also been disseminated through the ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database. Dissertation/thesis number: 3742150; ProQuest document ID: 1752116853. The author still retains copyright.

Author Details

Lynne Bentley, PhD, MBA, RN

Sigma Membership

Alpha Kappa at-Large

Type

Dissertation

Format Type

Text-based Document

Study Design/Type

Cross-Sectional

Research Approach

Quantitative Research

Keywords:

Emotional Distress, Cancer Survivors, Symptom Burden

Advisor

Karen Sousa

Second Advisor

Michael P. Galbraith

Third Advisor

Regina Fink

Fourth Advisor

Jean Kutner

Degree

PhD

Degree Grantor

University of Colorado

Degree Year

2015

Rights Holder

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All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository.

All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.

Review Type

None: Degree-based Submission

Acquisition

Proxy-submission

Date of Issue

2024-07-09

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