ON THE NATURE OF CANCER-PATIENTS SOCIAL INTERACTIONS

Whereas there is general agreement that supportive relationships can b e important for the psychological well-being of cancer patients, findi ngs are mixed regarding the extent to which high quality social suppor t is available to them. This manuscript describes two studies that inv estigated the possibility that subtle disruption may occur in serial i nteractions with cancer patients because of discomfort on the part of interactants. In Study 1, participants conversed with a confederate, w ho was described to some of them as a cancer patient. Although no diff erences were observed on behavioral measures or on participant self-re ports of reactions to the conversation, confederate and observer ratin gs of conversation positivity indicated that participants who believed they were speaking With a cancer patient were less positive in their interactions. As predicted, these participants appeared to have confli cted reactions toward the confederate. The second study attempted to d etermine the extent to which these findings applied to the experiences of cancer patients by interviewing 30 patients regarding the nature o f their social interactions. Consistent with the results of Study 1, p atients reported that derogation and overt physical withdrawal were ra re, but that more subtle indicants of discomfort did negatively affect the tone of some interactions.