Styles of Expressing Emotion in Women Suffering from Breast Cancer Compared to Healthy Women

Severe and chronic diseases can influence patients` psychological factors and prevent expressing emotion at an appropriate level.
The purpose of this research is to study and compare emotional expressiveness, emotional control and ambivalence in emotional expressiveness in women suffering from breast cancer and healthy counterparts.
In this cross-sectional study, 108 married women living in Rasht (54 suffering from breast cancer and 54 healthy women) were studied using available sampling method and based on the purpose of selection and through questionnairs related to styles of expressing emotion including emotional expressiveness questionnaires (EEQ), ambivalence in emotional expressiveness questionnaires and Emotional Control Questioners (ECQ). To compare two independent samples, the data were analyzed by ANOVA and SPSS-18 software.
The results showed that women suffering from breast cancer had significantly less emotional expressiveness (in comparison with healthy women) (p The styles of emotion expression have considerable roles in preserving and maintaining relationship. Coping through emotional appeal (Such as active coping and processing by means of emotional expression) can lead to positive social responses and community support as a buffer in coping with the disease and more adaptability in patients with breast cancer.