The effects of perceived stress on hope in women with breast cancer and the role of psychological hardiness

Abstract

Objective Diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer are psychologically stressful events, and hope and hardiness have been found to be important constructs for women with breast cancer. Therefore, this research sought to examine the relationships of perceived stress and hardiness with hope, and the buffering role of hardiness in the link between perceived stress and hope among Iranian women with breast cancer. Methods Two hundred and twenty Iranian women with breast cancer from three hospitals completed online measures evaluating perceived stress, hardiness, and hope. Results Using structural equation modelling, perceived stress was found to be negatively related to hope. Additionally, there was a positive relationship between hardiness and hope. The findings indicate that hardiness is a buffer in the link between perceived stress and hope for women with breast cancer. Conclusions These findings demonstrate the importance of hardiness in reducing the effects of perceived stress on hope and have clinical implications for health professionals.

The Relationship Between Psychological Hardiness and Social Support in Women With Breast Cancer

“…The result of this study showed a significant relationship between psychological hardiness and perceived social support, which prevents psychological distress to deal with stress among women with breast cancer. It means that the higher the level of perceived social support, the higher the psychological hardiness of women with breast cancer, which was consistent with several other studies [10][11][12][13][14][15], and no study was found inconsistent with this finding. Abdollahi et al showed the significance of hardiness in decreasing perceived stress impacts on hope and reported its clinical implications for health practitioners [15].…”

“…Hardiness traits among females with breast cancer are a buffer in perceived stress [15]. People with a high level of hardiness are possibly more capable of enduring the negative results of life stressors.…”

Patient-reported Outcomes of Patients With Breast Cancer During the COVID-19 Outbreak in the Epicenter of China: A Cross-sectional Survey Study

“…Responses of each question range from "0" (not at all) to "3" (nearly every day). Depression severity was classified into none (0-4), mild (5-9), moderate (10)(11)(12)(13)(14), and severe (> 15) according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fourth edition criteria. ISI is a self-assessment tool measuring the patient's perception of both nocturnal and diurnal symptoms of insomnia.…”

“…A 4-point Likert scale is used to rate each item (eg, 0 ¼ none, 4 ¼ very severe), yielding a total score ranging from 0 to 28. The total score is interpreted as follows: absent of insomnia (0-7); subthreshold insomnia (8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14); moderate insomnia (15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20)(21); and severe insomnia (22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28). The IES-R, also a self-reported questionnaire, yields a total score (ranging from 0 to 88).…”

“…The mean age of patients with BC in China is 45 to 55 years, which is considerably younger than for Western women, according to epidemiologic data from China. 10 A diagnosis of BC can result in long-lasting mental health effects on women, 11 such as physical hardship, traumatic events during treatment, fear of recurrence, etc. Furthermore, mental illness can further exacerbate the quality of life of patients with BC, resulting in worse BC outcomes.…”