title: Personal values and individual quality of life in palliative care patients.
abstract: To evaluate the relationship between personal values and individual quality of life (iQoL) in palliative care patients, 75 patients with advanced cancer or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) were asked to complete a self-report questionnaire concerning personal values and a semi-structured interview on their iQoL. Sixty-four patients took part in the study (56% cancer, 44% ALS). The most important personal values were benevolence, self-direction, and universalism, whereas power, achievement, and stimulation were the least important. Self-transcendence values were higher than self-enhancement values in all patients. Compared with healthy adults, palliative care patients scored significantly higher in benevolence and lower in self-enhancement values. Conservation values (security, conformity, tradition) were correlated with higher levels of iQoL (P=0.03). There were no significant differences between ALS and cancer patients. These data suggest that conservation values protect the patients' iQoL in the palliative care situation. The observed shift towards self-transcendence values may be related to coping processes of terminally ill patients. The relationship between self-transcendence values and iQoL should be further investigated.
authors.affiliation: Interdisciplinary Center for Palliative Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians University, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: Martin J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Fegg
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wasner
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Neudert
authors.forename: Gian Domenico
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Borasio
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000690:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology*; D010166:Palliative Care; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D012649:Self Concept; D012945:Social Values