Attachment orientations of Greek cancer patients in palliative care. A validation study of the Experiences in Close Relationships scale (ECR-M16).
OBJECTIVE
Health-care professionals may serve as attachment figures, nevertheless little research has been made in the palliative context. The psychometric properties of the brief ECR-M16 in Greek cancer patients were explored.


METHODS
The ECR-M16 was translated into Greek (G-ECR-M16), and was administered to 100 patients before starting palliative care and 7 days later to test its stability. Patients (N=35) also completed the EORTC QLQ-C30 scales.


RESULTS
Cronbach's alphas for the discomfort for closeness, anxiety and avoidance scales were 0.871, 0.762, and 0.761, respectively. Test-retest reliability was very satisfactory (p< 0.0005). Factor analysis yielded three factors (58.75% of the variance). Known-groups validity showed that discomfort with closeness had a statistically significant correlation with advanced disease stage (p=0.022).


CONCLUSIONS
The G-ECR-M16 is a valid research tool for the attachment patterns' impact in Greek cancer patients.
Pain Relief and Palliative Care Unit, Dept. of Radiology, Areteion Hospital, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens, School of Medicine, Athens, Greece.
Eleni
E
Tsilika
Efi
E
Parpa
Natasa
N
Galanopoulou
Vasiliki
V
Gennimata
Eftychia
E
Mosa
Antonis
A
Galanos
Kyriaki
K
Mystakidou
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006115:Greece; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010166:Palliative Care / Q000523:psychology*; D000070659:Patient Comfort / Q000379:methods; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000379:methods; D015203:Reproducibility of Results