The Development of Social Relationships, Social Support, and Posttraumatic Growth in a Dragon Boating Team for Breast Cancer Survivors

Abstract

Physical activity experiences may contribute to psychological and social wellbeing among breast cancer survivors. The main purpose of the current study was to qualitatively explore the development of social relationships, social support, and posttraumatic growth among breast cancer survivors participating in a dragon boat program over 19 months. Guided by interpretative phenomenological analysis (Smith, Flowers, & Larkin, 2009), semistructured interviews were conducted with 17 breast cancer survivors on five occasions over their first two seasons of dragon boating. Narrative accounts were developed for each participant, and four profiles emerged describing processes of social and posttraumatic growth development over time: "developing a feisty spirit of survivorship," "I don't want it to be just about me," "it's not about the pink it's about the paddling," and "hard to get close." Profiles were discussed in terms of developing social relationships and support, providing support to others, physicality and athleticism, and negative interactions and experiences.

Social Comparisons, Social Support, and Self-Perceptions in Group Exercise for People With Parkinson's Disease

“…This reframing reflects a self-regulatory process of refocusing on controllable factors and letting go of uncontrollable factors that can alleviate the diminished perceived GROUP EXERCISE FOR PEOPLE WITH PARKINSON'S 28 control that is often experienced in chronic illness (Frazier, Cotrell, & Hooker, 2003). The reticence to participate due to fear of identifying with those with more advanced stages of the disease is similar to that documented in studies of group exercise for breast cancer survivors (McDonough, Sabiston, & Ullrich-French, 2011), although it appeared to be more pervasive in the present study, perhaps due to the differences in illness trajectory between cancer and PD. From a practical perspective, it is important to note that the transition from experiencing anxiety about being around others with more advanced PD towards being inspired by their ability to cope appeared to occur as participants got to know each other better.…”

“…But providing opportunities for participants to help others with PD, both through informal interactions or through volunteering, coaching, or other formal roles may also provide alternate routes for bolstering athletic identity. Volunteering as an assistant for those at a more advanced stage of the disease may help the providers of such support reinforce their self-perceptions as physically capable and knowledgeable about physical activity, as well as provide direct assistance to the receiver, and model available support to the larger group who witnesses this behavior (McDonough et al, 2011). Altruism, the selfless concern for the well-being of others, and prosocial behavior are facilitated by perceived similarity and common fate (Vollhardt, 2009), and participants may find personal meaning through helping others with whom they identify.…”

Adversarial Growth in Olympic Swimmers: Constructive Reality or Illusory Self-Deception?

“…Thus, IPA was deemed an appropriate methodology to 165 explore the sense making and personal meaning in individuals' self-reported growth (cf. 166 McDonough et al, 2011;Tamminen et al, 2013) and an ideal method to interpret the occurrence 167 of illusory growth. 168…”

‘Do you mean I’m not whole?’: Exploring the role of support in women’s experiences of mastectomy without reconstruction

“…The study Transcripts were analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), an approach widely used in health psychology over the past two decades (Smith, Flowers and Larkin, 2009;Smith, 1996), with many pieces of high quality research focusing on illness experience (Smith, 2011). Breast cancer experiences have been explored using IPA in the US (Vilhauer, 2011;McDonough, Sabiston and Ullrich-French, 2011), the Netherlands (de Boer, van der Hulst and Slatman, 2015), and in the UK (redacted for review; Loaring et al, 2015).…”