Impact of emotional competence on supportive care needs, anxiety and depression symptoms of cancer patients: a multiple mediation model

Abstract

These innovative results show the important effect of patients' emotional competence on their supportive care need satisfaction, as mediated by anxiety and depression. Consequently, patients with high emotional competence may require less psychosocial input from medical clinicians. Thus, emotional competence may be integrated into health models and psychosocial interventions to improve patient adjustment. Further investigation is, however, needed to know which are the most beneficial specific emotional competences and at what point of the cancer pathway.

The role of trait emotional intelligence in quality of life, anxiety and depression symptoms after surgery for esophageal or gastric cancer: A French national database FREGAT

“…EC seems to be a good predictor of the emotional distress of these patients, who tend to report higher anxiety and depression symptoms than patients with other types of cancer . These results are congruent with the conclusions of the cross‐sectional studies showing that EC has moderate associations with the anxiety and depression of patients with digestive, breast, or urological cancers . These findings are also consistent with the hypothesis that EC can facilitate the cognitive and emotional processes needed to adjust to a potentially traumatic event, such as cancer …”

“…A beneficial direct effect of intrapersonal and interpersonal EC at baseline on anxiety and depression symptoms and HRQoL level after diagnosis and surgery was expected (hypothesis 1). In particular, EC about one's own emotions should explain more of the variance in HRQoL, and anxiety and depression symptoms than interpersonal EC, as previously shown . Finally, intrapersonal and interpersonal EC at baseline should show an indirect effect on HRQoL after surgery via fewer anxiety and depression symptoms (hypothesis 2).…”

“…In fact, intrapersonal EC seems to have a greater effect on personal issues such as health‐related variables in clinical and general populations . Intrapersonal EC has revealed a stronger effect on the anxiety and depression symptoms and supportive care needs of breast and digestive cancer patients than interpersonal EC . Lastly, EC revealed a stronger indirect effect on HRQoL via depression symptoms than anxiety symptoms.…”

“…For patients facing cancer, EC used in daily life has been associated with fewer anxiety and depression symptoms and unmet supportive care needs as well as better social support and life satisfaction . Intrapersonal EC has been reported as having stronger correlations with anxiety and depression than interpersonal EC . Thus, EC could be a good predictor of the anxiety and depression symptoms of patients with esogastric cancer after surgery as well as of their HRQoL.…”

“…This, in turn, facilitates a better quality of life and fewer unmet supportive care needs. In fact, the intrapersonal and interpersonal EC of cancer patients predicts fewer unmet supportive care needs via fewer anxiety and depression symptoms . Since emotional distress has significant associations with HRQoL in gastric cancer patients, EC could predict better HRQoL through less emotional distress.…”