Gender differences in the dimensions of quality of life.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To explore gender differences and similarities in the dimensions of quality of life (QOL).

DESIGN

Secondary analysis of the Multidimensional Quality of Life Scale--Cancer Version (MQOLS--CA) data from two different research studies.

SETTINGS

Multiple outpatient oncology sites.

SAMPLE

The typical female participant (n = 254) was 58 years old (SD +/- 11.3) with 14 years of education, married/partnered (64%), Caucasian (88%), and diagnosed with breast (47%) or colorectal (16%) cancer. The typical male participant (n = 222) was 60 years old (SD +/- 14) with 14.3 years of education, married/partnered (69%), Caucasian (85%), and diagnosed with colorectal (31%) or prostate (13%) cancer.

METHODS

Factor analytic procedures and reliability testing.

MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES

QOL as measured by the MQOLS-CA, gender.

FINDINGS

For women, two factors emerged from the analysis procedures-psychosocial well-being (7 items) and physical competence (6 items). For the men, two different factors emerged--vitality (8 items) and personal resources (4 items). None of the cancer-specific items from the MQOLS-CA loaded on any of the factors for either gender.

CONCLUSIONS

Measurement of QOL requires gender-specific questions to accurately address the dimensions of the concept of QOL in females and males.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE

Additional research is warranted to replicate these findings. Gender-specific interventions could then be developed and tested to maximize the QOL of all patients.