Rising Camella J, Bol Nadine, Burke-Garcia Amelia, Rains Stephen, Wright Kevin B
a Department of Communication , College of Humanities and Social Sciences, George Mason University , Fairfax , Virginia , USA.
b Amsterdam School of Communication Research (ASCoR) , University of Amsterdam , Amsterdam , The Netherlands.
J Health Commun. 2017 Jun;22(6):469-476. doi: 10.1080/10810730.2017.1304471. Epub 2017 Apr 17.
Men with prostate cancer often need social support to help them cope with illness-related physiological and psychosocial challenges. Whether those needs are met depends on receiving support optimally matched to their needs. This study examined relationships between perceived stress, prostate cancer-related stigma, weak-tie support preference, and online community use for social support in a survey of online prostate cancer community participants (n = 149). Findings revealed a positive relationship between stigma and perceived stress. This relationship, however, was moderated by weak-tie support preference and online community use for social support. Specifically, stigma was positively related to perceived stress when weak-tie support was preferred. Analyses also showed a positive relationship between stigma and perceived stress in those who used their online community for advice or emotional support. Health communication scholars should work collaboratively with diagnosed men, clinicians, and online community administrators to develop online interventions that optimally match social support needs.
患有前列腺癌的男性通常需要社会支持来帮助他们应对与疾病相关的生理和心理社会挑战。这些需求能否得到满足取决于是否能获得与他们需求最佳匹配的支持。本研究在一项针对在线前列腺癌社区参与者（n = 149）的调查中，考察了感知压力、前列腺癌相关耻辱感、弱关系支持偏好以及为获得社会支持而使用在线社区之间的关系。研究结果显示耻辱感与感知压力之间存在正相关关系。然而，这种关系受到弱关系支持偏好和为获得社会支持而使用在线社区的调节。具体而言，当更喜欢弱关系支持时，耻辱感与感知压力呈正相关。分析还表明，那些利用在线社区获取建议或情感支持的人，耻辱感与感知压力之间也存在正相关关系。健康传播学者应与确诊的男性、临床医生和在线社区管理员合作，开发出能最佳匹配社会支持需求的在线干预措施。
