I Had to Make Them Feel at Ease

Narrative Accounts of How Women With Breast Cancer Navigate Social Support

Datos Bibliográficos

ID4645381
AutoresJaime D Wright (0000-0003-4514-0915, Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, California, USA, autor de correspondencia), Candyce H Kroenke (0000-0002-6128-3118, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland, California, USA), Marilyn L Kwan (0000-0001-8863-3950, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland, California, USA), Lawrence H Kushi (0000-0001-9136-1175, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland, California, USA)
Año2021
Volumen31
Número6
Páginas1056-1068
Fecha de publicación2021-05-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaQualitative Health Research (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 1049-7323 • E-ISSN: 1552-7557
EditorialSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/1049732321989999
PMID33645335
OpenAlexW3134184702
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas3
Referencias citadas52

Social scientific studies of social support predominantly focus on the positive associations between social support and emotional well-being. The negative aspects of social support have received much less attention. We conducted semi-structured interviews of women with breast cancer ( n = 47) to examine the emotional strain associated with social support and how recipients navigate it in ways that protect themselves and their relationships. Based on our analysis of narratives of women's lived experiences of breast cancer, we found that social support can be perceived negatively and associated with experiences of emotional strain. Interviewees engaged in strategies of avoidance, information control, and cognitive reframing to minimize emotional strain. We applied the concept of emotion work to understand the complexity of emotional strain in this context. The findings highlight the difficulties of social support from a recipient's perspective and emphasize the importance of perception and agency in navigating this experience

Breast cancer · Cancer · Cognitive reframing · Narrative · Perception · Social support · Sociology · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics · Emotional Labor in Professions · Medicine · Mental Health and Patient Involvement · Psychology · Social Psychology