Social representations about cancer

• Main Author: Andreja Cirila Škufca
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Slovenian Psychologists' Association 2003-09-01
• Series: Psihološka Obzorja
• Subjects: social representations; attribution; cancer; women
• Online Access: http://psiholoska-obzorja.si/arhiv_clanki/2003_3/skufca.pdf

In this article we are presenting the results of the comparison study on social representations and causal attributions about cancer. We compared a breast cancer survivors group and control group without own experience of cancer of their own. Although social representations about cancer differ in each group, they are closely related to the concept of suffering, dying and death. We found differences in causal attribution of cancer. In both groups we found a category of risky behavior, which attributes a responsibility for a disease to an individual. Besides these factors we found predominate stress and psychological influences in cancer survivors group. On the other hand control group indicated factors outside the ones control e.g. heredity and environmental factors. Representations about a disease inside person's social space are important in co-shaping the individual process of coping with own disease. Since these representations are not always coherent with the knowledge of modern medicine their knowledge and appreciation in the course of treatment is of great value. We find the findingss of applied social psychology important as starting points in the therapeutic work with patients.