Mosher Catherine E, Danoff-Burg Sharon
State University of New York, Albany.
J Lang Soc Psychol. 2009 Mar 1;28(1). doi: 10.1177/0261927X08325762.
Two studies examined the social and emotional implications of different linguistic classifications of individuals with cancer. Undergraduates were randomly assigned to rate their reactions to either cancer patients or cancer survivors. Across studies, participants held more favorable perceptions of the character of cancer survivors relative to cancer patients and displayed more positive attitudes toward the former group. In addition, participants in Study 1 reported greater willingness to interact with cancer survivors compared with cancer patients. Positive perceptions of prognosis did not appear to account for favorable attitudes toward cancer survivors; most participants in Study 2 did not assume that cancer survivors were beyond the treatment phase of their illness or cured of their disease. Findings point to a potentially powerful effect of word choice on reactions to individuals with cancer.
两项研究考察了对癌症患者不同语言分类的社会和情感影响。本科生被随机分配，以评估他们对癌症患者或癌症幸存者的反应。在各项研究中，相较于癌症患者，参与者对癌症幸存者的性格持有更积极的看法，并且对前一组表现出更积极的态度。此外，研究1中的参与者报告称，与癌症患者相比，他们更愿意与癌症幸存者互动。对预后的积极看法似乎并不能解释对癌症幸存者的积极态度；研究2中的大多数参与者并不认为癌症幸存者已度过疾病的治疗阶段或已治愈。研究结果表明，措辞对人们对癌症患者的反应可能有强大的影响。
