Dispositional Optimism and Well-being in Cancer Patients: The Role of CancerRelated Self-Efficacy

Optimistic attitudes of cancer patients are shown as an important personal resource for the psychological and physical adjustment to the illness. Coping styles and appraisals were suggested as indirect pathways through which optimism associates with better functioning in patients. The current study aimed to investigate the role of cancer-specific self-efficacy domains (i.e., coping with cancer-related side effects and stress, maintaining activity and independence, seeking and understanding medical information, and affect regulation and seeking social support) in the association between optimism and physical and psychological (i.e., depressive symptoms) well-being of cancer patients. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 120 patients in Ankara, Turkey. Majority of the participants were female, and about half of them were breast cancer patients. Participants filled a set of self-report questionnaires including Life Orientation Test-Revised, Cancer Behavior Inventory, Multidimensional Quality of Life Scale-Cancer, and Beck Depression Inventory. The data were analyzed separately for physical well-being and depressive symptoms through the bootstrapping method. Of the four self-efficacy domains, maintaining activity and independence accounted for a significant proportion of variance in the optimism-physical well-being and optimism-depressive symptoms relations. Findings highlight the importance of patients' beliefs in their ability to sustain their daily activities for having better physical and psychological well-being during cancer treatment as well as the role of optimism in promoting this particular self-efficacy domain. Interventions are suggested to focus on enhancing cancer patients' self-efficacy in maintaining activity and independence

Şehir coğrafyası açısından bir araştırma: geçmişten günümüze Tokat

Bu çalışma, Tokat ilinin yönetim merkezi olan Tokat şehrinin kuruluşu ve gelişimi üzerinde etkili olan doğal ve beşeri coğrafi etmenler ile şehrin geçmişten günümüze nüfus, yerleşme, fonksiyon ve fonksiyon alanlarını incelemek üzere yapılmıştır. Şehir araştırmaları ve şehircilik faaliyetlerinin günümüz dünyasında önemli bir yere sahip olması ve Tokat şehrinin coğrafi bakımdan araştırmakta geç kalınmış önemli şehirlerden biri olması böyle bir çalışmanın yapılması gerekliliğini doğurmuştur. Bu amaç doğrultusunda öncelikli olarak şehrin kurulduğu ilk nüve belirlenmiş ve arşiv belgelerindeki nüfus ve yerleşme kayıtları yardımıyla şehrin gelişim yönleri saptanmıştır. Daha sonra ise gelişim yönü üzerinde etkili olan coğrafi faktörler irdelenmiştir. Gelişim süreci içerisinde Osmanlı dönemi, şehir için ayrı bir önem arz ettiğinden bu bölüme nispeten daha fazla yer ayrılmış, XVI. ve XVIII. yüzyılda şehri ziyaret eden seyyahların görüşlerinden de sıkça faydalanılmıştır. Bir şehir coğrafyasında yerleşim alanındaki nüfus ve yerleşmenin nitelikleri, çalışmadaki en mühim bilgileri ihtiva ettiğinden özellikle Osmanlı dönemi ve Cumhuriyet döneminde bahsi geçen noktalar titizlikle incelenmiştir. Şehirdeki ekonomik faaliyet türleri ve bu kollarda çalışan kişi sayısı da şehir çalışmalarında dikkat çeken bir diğer unsurdur. Bu konuda da Osmanlı dönemindeki ticari hayat yine aynı başlık altında alt başlıklara ayrılarak detaylı bir biçimde ele alınmış, günümüzde şehirde görülen ekonomik faaliyet türleri ve özelliklerine ise üçüncü bölümde ayrı bir yer verilmiştir. Coğrafyanın mekanla ilişkili bir bilim dalı olması, elbette bu bilimi diğer dallardan ayıran en önemli özelliktir. Bu sebepten üçüncü bölümde şehir fonksiyonları, fonksiyon alanlarıyla örtüştürülerek verilen bilgilerin mekanla ilişkisi üzerinde durulmuştur.Yapılan bu çalışma sonucunda yaklaşık 1600 yıldır varlığını devam ettiren bu şehrin yıllar içinde zaman zaman abad olup şahlanırken zaman zaman yok olmanın eşiğine geldiği görülmektedir. Böyle bir döngü içinde Anadolu’nun önemli yerleşim yerlerinden biri olan Tokat’ın şu an için yıldızı sönmüş gibi görünse de barındırdığı tarihi birikim, özgün kimlik ve doğal coğrafi faktörler nedeniyle kısa bir süre içerisinde tekrar mamur olması ve dünyadaki önemli turizm ve ticaret noktalarından biri olması beklenmektedir.--------------------This study was carried out to investigate the natural and human geographical factors affecting the establishment and development of Tokat city which is the administrative center of Tokat province and the population, settlement, function and function areas of the city. The fact that city researches and urbanization activities have an important place in today's world and that Tokat city is one of the important cities that are late to investigate geographically, has necessitated such a study. For this purpose, the first core of the city was determined and the directions of development of the city were determined with the help of population and settlement records in archival documents. Later on, geographical factors that have an effect on development direction were examined. As the Ottoman period in the development process was of special significance for the city, this chapter has been given more importance and the views of the travellers who visited the city in the XVI and XVIII centuries have been frequently used. As the population of the settlement area and the characteristics of the settlement contain the most important information about the work in a geographical region, the points that mentioned in the Ottoman period and the Republican period were examined carefully. The types of economic activity in the city and the number of people working in these areas are also another factor that attract attention in city studies. In this respect, the commercial life in the Ottoman period was also divided into sub-headings under the same heading in a detailed way. Today, the types and features of economic activity seen in the city are given a separate place in the third section. The fact that geography is a scientific discipline associated with space is definitely the most important feature that separates this science from other branches. Therefore, in the third chapter, the relationship between the functions of the city and the information given by covering them with the function areas is emphasized. As a result of this work, it has been observed that this city, which has been in existence for about 1600 years, has become properous from time to time during the years and has come to the brink of disappearing from time to time. In such a cycle, Tokat which is one of the most important settlements of Anatolia seems to be like a dull star, but due to the history, unique identity and natural geographical factors, it has to be rebuilt in a short time and become one of the important tourism and trade points in the world as it is expected

Fluorescent Cadmium Chalcogenide Nanoclusters in Ubiquitin

Fluorescent semiconductor nanoclusters (FNCs) have received much attention by many scientists due to their attractive functions and features. However, the traditional organometallic chemical synthesis routes for such FNCs require harsh reaction conditions in organic solvents, which limit their use in biological applications. Therefore, developing synthesis strategies for the fabrication of FNCs by association with proteins under mild reaction conditions is pivotal to improve their functionalities. In addition, understanding the effect of structural and chemical properties of proteins on the synthesis mechanism of FNCs is one of the key points, which eventually enables to control and tune the photophysical properties of FNCs. The purpose of this study is to introduce the syntheses of cadmium selenide nanocluster (CdSeNC) and cadmium sulfide nanocluster (CdSNC) by using ubiquitin, a small cysteine‐free protein, and investigating their properties via spectroscopic and microscopic methods. It is shown that significant changes in the protein structure as well as in its oligomerization occur upon the formation of the highly hydrated FNCs.publishe

Optimism, Cancer Patients’ Depressive Symptoms, and Quality of Life: Mediating Role of Cancer Related Self-efficacy

It was well established that optimistic attitudes in cancer patients predict better psychological and physical adjustment to the illness both during and after the treatment (Mazanec, Daly, Douglas, & Lipson, 2010; Bozo, Gündoğdu, & Büyükaşık-Çolak, 2009). Previous studies indicated that optimism is indirectly associated with cancer patients' quality of life (QOL) through coping styles and appraisals used by the patients (Schou, Ekeberg, & Ruland, 2005). To understand whether there are other psychological mechanisms underlying the relation of optimism with quality of life and depressive symptoms of cancer patients, the current study aimed to investigate the mediator role of cancer related selfefficacy. One hundred and twenty cancer patients participated in the study and Life Orientations Test-Revised, Cancer Behavior Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory, and Multidimensional Quality of Life Scale–Cancer were administered to them. Results revealed that of the four self-efficacy domains, only the one related to maintaining activity and independence mediated the optimism-QOL and optimism-depression relations. These findings highlighted the importance of patients' beliefs in their ability to sustain their daily activities for having better physical and psychological well-being

The Psychometric Properties of Cancer Behavior Inventory as a Predictor of Quality of Life in Turkish Cancer Patients

In the literature, studies showed that self-efficacy of cancer patients are related to their quality of life in different domains. Considering the need of a scale measuring cancer related self-efficacy in Turkish culture, the objective of the current study was to examine psychometric reliability and validity of Cancer Behavior Inventory (CBI) in Turkish cancer patients. One-hundred and twenty cancer patients participated in the study. In addition to CBI, participants were administered Beck Depression Inventory, Multidimensional Quality of Life Scale - Cancer, Ways of Coping Inventory, Life Orientation Test-Revised, and General Self-Efficacy Scale to test the validity of the adapted scale. The results showed that the CBI has a four-factor structure in Turkish culture. The internal consistency of the scale was .91 and the internal consistencies of subscales ranged between .70 and .90. The validity scores of the scale were also satisfactory. The regression analysis revealed that the CBI predicts the patients' quality of life better than General Self-efficacy Scale. CBI is a valid and reliable measure. As compared to general self-efficacy measures, CBI provides more precise information about cancer patients' QOL. The results, directions for future studies and limitations were discussed in the light of the literature

The Effects of Risedronate Treatment on the Pain and the Quality of Life - Original Investigation

Aim: Osteoporosis is a skeletal system disease characterised by pain, physical disability and increased fracture risk which negatively effect quality of life. The aim of this study is to investigate the effects of risedronate treatment on pain and the quality of life at 6th and 12th months. Material and Methods: Eighty patients with osteoporosis were included the study and randomized into two groups. Thirty seven patients in the first group were given 35 mg weekly Risedronate and 600 mg elemantary calcium and 400IU vitamin D daily, 34 patients in the second group were given 600 mg elemantary calcium and 400IU vitamin D daily. Visual analogue scale, Beck depression scale and Notthingham health profile were completed to patients at the beginning of the treatment and at the end of the first year. Results: There was significant pain relief in both groups at 6 and 12 months. However, this was more prominent in the treatment group. It was defined that the significant decrease in the Beck depression scores was occured at the 6th month and continued at the end of the first year. In the assesment quality of life test, there was no difference before and after the treatment in the control group but we obtained significant difference in the treatment group. Conclusion: Improving the quality of life and decrease in the pain levels of the osteoporosis patients can be provided by risedronate treatment. (From the World of Osteoporosis 2009;15:34-7