Existential Meaning-Making Coping in Iran: A Qualitative Study among Patients with Cancer

Fereshteh Ahmadi, Mohammad Khodayarifard, Mohammad Rabbani, Saeid Zandi and Mona Sabzevari
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Fereshteh Ahmadi: Department of Social Work and Criminology, Faculty of Health and Occupational Studies, University of Gävle, 801 76 Gävle, Sweden
Mohammad Khodayarifard: Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Education, University of Tehran, Tehran 1417466191, Iran
Mohammad Rabbani: Department of Law and Political Science, University of Tehran, Tehran 1417614411, Iran
Saeid Zandi: Department of Counseling, Faculty of Psychology and Education, Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran 1489684511, Iran
Mona Sabzevari: Department of Psychology, Faculty of Psychology and Education, Shahid Beheshti University, Tehran 1983969411, Iran

Social Sciences, 2022, vol. 11, issue 2, 1-20

Abstract: This article is written on the basis of a study on meaning-making coping in Iran. The study is a part of an international project in 10 countries with different religious and cultural backgrounds. This article aims to discuss the secular existential meaning-making coping methods employed by Iranian cancer patients. Interviews were conducted with 27 participants with various kinds of cancer. Nine secular existential meaning-making coping strategies emerged from the analyses of the qualitative interviews. These coping methods are as follows: Ignoring the illness , Distraction , Altruism , Encounter with others , Nature , Discourse of the self , Visualization , Positive solitude , and Positive thinking and transformational orientation . It seems that, using these strategies, our sample of Iranian cancer patients/survivors have been denying/ignoring their illness, and/or empowering themselves. We discuss the results, considering the potential influence of cultural elements, including Iranian Islam, Persian mysticism, and Persian literature, on the selection of the coping strategies. The study contributes to our understanding of coping via elucidating how seriously ill individuals in Iran try to manage the challenges caused by a health crisis.

Keywords: adjustment to cancer; cancer experience; cancer patients; cancer survivors; chronic illness; coping mechanisms; coping strategies; cultural perspective; meaning-focused coping; serious illness (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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