Social comparison and coping with radiation therapy:The significance of different dimensions of comparison

Being confronted with a serious illness such as cancer and being treated for it, is a very threatening experience that may have consequences for almost every part of the patient’s life. The present thesis focused on how social comparison information can be used by cancer patients to adapt to their illness and the treatment with radiation therapy. It addressed several questions concerning the social comparison processes of cancer patients; what kind of social comparison information and contact they prefer, how they react to different types of social comparison information and how several factors, particularly the personality of the patients, influences these reactions. The aim of the present thesis was to provide more insight in the role of social comparison in the coping processes of cancer patients

Neuroticism and responses to social comparison among cancer patients

The present study examined how the effects of three audiotapes containig different types of social comparison information on the mood of cancer patients depended on the level of neuroticism. On the procedural tape, a man and woman discussed the process of radiation therapy, on the emotion tape, they focussed on emotional reactions to their illness and treatment, while on the coping tape they focussed on the way they had been coping. A validation study among 115 students showed that the tapes were perceived as they were intended. The main study was conducted among 226 patients who were about to undergo radiation therapy. Compared to patients in the control group, as patients were higher in neuroticism, they reported less negative mood after listening to the procedural and the coping tape. Furthermore, as patients were higher in neuroticism, they reported less negative mood after listening to the coping tape than to the emotion tape. Copyright (C) 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Social comparison and patient information: What do cancer patients want?

The present study focuses on social comparison processes among cancer patients. The sample consisted of 60 (ex-) cancer patients who participated in a course "coping with cancer". This study examined several aspects of social comparison: the need for comparison, the preferred direction of comparison and the influence of mode (information or contact seeking) and dimension (illness severity or coping) of social comparison as well as indicators of low well-being. The results show that the heed for comparison is particularly enhanced among those who evaluate their own health negatively. In addition, the results show that patients prefer to receive information about others who are better off, but also want contact with others who are better off. In addition, they are specifically interested in receiving information about others who are coping better. Practical implications are discussed. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved