Effects of relationship maintenance on psychological distress and dyadic adjustment among couples coping with lung cancer.
OBJECTIVE
Relationship maintenance strategies help to ensure the continuation of valued relationships by keeping them at a certain level of intimacy. This study evaluated how lung cancer patients' and spouses' efforts to maintain their relationships affected their psychological and marital adjustment over time.


METHODS
Psychosocial questionnaires were administered within 1 month of lung cancer treatment initiation (baseline) and 3 and 6 months later to 158 lung cancer patients and their spouses.


METHODS
Study outcomes were global severity index scores on the Brief Symptom Inventory, and total scores on the Dyadic Adjustment Scale.


RESULTS
Multilevel modeling analyses using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model showed that, regardless of gender or social role (i.e., patient or spouse), individuals who engaged in the strategies of positivity, networks, and shared tasks reported less distress at baseline than other participants. Over time, the effects of providing more assurances and experiencing a partner's increased reliance on social networks differed: patient distress was exacerbated, and spouse distress was alleviated. Couples where both partners engaged in more frequent maintenance behaviors reported greater dyadic adjustment at baseline and over time.


CONCLUSIONS
For couples coping with lung cancer, the initial treatment period may be an important time that sets the tone for future spousal interactions. Engaging in relationship maintenance during this stressful time may help mold more resilient relationships and facilitate adjustment as the disease progresses.
Badr
Hoda
H
Department of Behavioral Science, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77230-1439, USA. hbadr@mdanderson.org
Taylor
Cindy L Carmack
CL
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D003863:Depression / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires