Breast cancer patients' perceptions of their husbands' support in a cross-cultural context

Abstract

In light of the Western focus in the breast cancer literature on spouse support, this study attempted to investigate ethnic differences in their perceptions of the support provided by their spouses. Forty-six women who had had breast cancer 6 months to 3 years prior participated in this study. These women were selected from three ethnic groups (13 Euro-American (EA) women, 18 Chinese-American women and 15 Japanese-American women). The study attempted to assess the women's perceptions at two levels of inquiry. One was based on standardized testing and scales and the second was a qualitative semi-structured interview. It was hypothesized that few differences would exist in standardized testing, and that cultural differences would be found at the level of semi-structured interviewing. Results showed that in fact few differences existed among the three groups on standardized instruments. At the level of qualitative evaluation, however, it appeared that Asian-American women were expected to be self-sacrificing and nurturing of husband and family, while EA women were able to be dependent. Another major difference existed around the theme of harmony and intimacy, where Asian-American women had a goal of harmony over intimacy, while EA women had a goal of intimacy over harmony. A final major difference was in the area of communication, with both Asian groups appearing to value non-verbal communication over verbal, while EA women appeared to value verbal communication over non-verbal.