TY - JOUR
T1 - Trajectories of Posttraumatic Growth and Associated Characteristics in Women with Breast Cancer
AU - Danhauer, Suzanne C.
AU - Russell, Greg
AU - Case, L. Douglas
AU - Sohl, Stephanie J.
AU - Tedeschi, Richard G.
AU - Addington, Elizabeth L.
AU - Triplett, Kelli
AU - Van Zee, Kimberly J.
AU - Naftalis, Elizabeth Z.
AU - Levine, Beverly
AU - Avis, Nancy E.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015, The Society of Behavioral Medicine.
PY - 2015/10/10
Y1 - 2015/10/10
N2 - Background: Cancer survivors may experience posttraumatic growth (PTG), positive psychological changes resulting from highly stressful events; however, the longitudinal course of PTG is poorly understood. Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to determine trajectories of PTG in breast cancer survivors and associated characteristics. Methods: Women (N = 653) participating in a longitudinal observational study completed questionnaires within 8 months of breast cancer diagnosis and 6, 12, and 18 months later. Group-based modeling identified PTG trajectories. Chi-square tests and ANOVA detected group differences in demographic, medical, and psychosocial variables. Results: Six trajectory groups emerged. Three were stable at different levels of PTG, two increased modestly, and one increased substantially over time. Trajectory groups differed by age, race, receipt of chemotherapy, illness intrusiveness, depressive symptoms, active-adaptive coping, and social support. Conclusions: This first examination of PTG trajectories in US cancer survivors elucidates heterogeneity in longitudinal patterns of PTG. Future research should determine whether other samples exhibit similar trajectories and whether various PTG trajectories predict mental and physical health outcomes.
AB - Background: Cancer survivors may experience posttraumatic growth (PTG), positive psychological changes resulting from highly stressful events; however, the longitudinal course of PTG is poorly understood. Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to determine trajectories of PTG in breast cancer survivors and associated characteristics. Methods: Women (N = 653) participating in a longitudinal observational study completed questionnaires within 8 months of breast cancer diagnosis and 6, 12, and 18 months later. Group-based modeling identified PTG trajectories. Chi-square tests and ANOVA detected group differences in demographic, medical, and psychosocial variables. Results: Six trajectory groups emerged. Three were stable at different levels of PTG, two increased modestly, and one increased substantially over time. Trajectory groups differed by age, race, receipt of chemotherapy, illness intrusiveness, depressive symptoms, active-adaptive coping, and social support. Conclusions: This first examination of PTG trajectories in US cancer survivors elucidates heterogeneity in longitudinal patterns of PTG. Future research should determine whether other samples exhibit similar trajectories and whether various PTG trajectories predict mental and physical health outcomes.
KW - Breast cancer
KW - Longitudinal
KW - Posttraumatic growth
KW - Trajectory
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U2 - 10.1007/s12160-015-9696-1
DO - 10.1007/s12160-015-9696-1
M3 - Article
C2 - 25786706
AN - SCOPUS:84941191903
SN - 0883-6612
VL - 49
SP - 650
EP - 659
JO - Annals of Behavioral Medicine
JF - Annals of Behavioral Medicine
IS - 5
ER -