The McGill Health Psychology Research Group has merged with the McGill Psychotherapy Process Research Group, and is now the Science and Practice in Psychology (SAPP) research group.
Secondary Prevention of Melanoma via Skin Self-Examination | Self-help Intervention for Coping with Cancer | Couples Coping Project | Self-compassion
Secondary Prevention of Melanoma via Skin Self-Examination
Toward reducing melanoma-related mortality in high-risk individuals: Barriers and facilitators of adherence to skin self-examination
Principal Investigator: Annett Körner, PhD
Lead Student Investigators: Adina Coroiu, PhD Cand.; Zofia Czajkowska, PhD Cand.; Julia DiMillo, PhD, Chelsea Moran, MA student, Catherine Bergeron, MA student
- Melanoma is the deadliest and fastest growing tumour of the skin. It is now the 7th most commonly diagnosed cancer in Canada.
- Melanomas are recognizable and highly curable in early stages, making early detection the most effective measure to reduce mortality.
- Skin self-examination has been shown to result in earlier diagnosis and reduced mortality risk but has been underutilized by those at high-risk.
- The Health Psychology Research Group is investigating the psychosocial barriers and facilitators (e.g., distress, coping strategies, partner support, physician support) of this life-saving health behavior.
Full Abstract
Background
Melanoma is the fastest growing tumor of the skin, which disproportionately affects younger and middle-aged adults. As melanomas are visible, recognizable, and highly curable while in early stages, early diagnosis is one of the most effective measures to decrease melanoma-related mortality. Skin self-examination results in earlier detection and removal of the melanoma. Due to the elevated risk of survivors for developing subsequent melanomas, monthly self-exams are strongly recommended as part of follow-up care. Yet, only a minority of high-risk individuals practices systematic and regular self-exams. This can be improved through patient education. However, dermatological education is effective only in about 50% of the cases and little is known about those who do not respond. In the current literature, psychosocial variables like distress, coping with cancer, as well as partner and physician support are widely neglected in relation to the practice of skin self-examination, despite the fact that they have been shown to be essential for other health behaviors and for adherence to medical advice. Moreover, the current body of knowledge is compromised by the inconsistent conceptualization of SSE. The main objective of the current project is to examine psychosocial predictors of skin self-examination using on a rigorous and clinically sound methodology.
Methods/Design
The longitudinal, mixed-method study examines key psychosocial variables related to the acquisition and to the long-term maintenance of skin self-examination in 200 patients with melanoma. Practice of self-exam behaviors is assessed at 3 and 12 months after receiving an educational intervention designed based on best-practice standards. Examined predictors of skin self-exam behaviors include biological sex, perceived self-exam efficacy, distress, partner and physician support, and coping strategies. Qualitative analyses of semi-structured interviews will complement and enlighten the quantitative findings.
Discussion
The identification of short and long-term predictors of skin self-examination and an increased understanding of barriers will allow health care professionals to better address patient difficulties in adhering to this life-saving health behavior. Furthermore, the findings will enable the development and evaluation of evidence-based, comprehensive intervention strategies. Ultimately, these findings could impact a wide range of outreach programs and secondary prevention initiatives for other populations with increased melanoma risk.
Methodology Paper
Self-help Intervention for Coping with Cancer
Feasibility, acceptability and efficacy of bibliotherapy for patients with cancer: A randomized control trial
Investigators: Nicole Roberts, PhD & Annett Körner, PhD
- In response to rapidly growing health care costs, it is increasingly being recommended that minimal interventions for the treatment of mental and physical conditions be offered before more intensive treatment options are pursued.
- Patient education and bibliotherapy are low-cost interventions frequently employed as a minimal intervention. Yet, research on the effectiveness of low-intensity interventions such as bibliotherapy is extremely rare in psychosocial oncology.
- The Health Psychology Research Group is currently conducting a randomized controlled trial (RCT) to test the efficacy of the self-help format of a psychoeducational, cognitive-behavioural coping skills program (ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01718574) to enhance self-regulation and wellbeing in cancer patients.
Full Abstract
Coming soon
The Couples Coping Project
Furthering systemic inquiries into couples coping with cancer through adaptation and extension of a dyadic efficacy model
Investigators: Danielle Brosseau, PhD Cand. & Annett Körner, PhD
- When involved in a committed intimate relationship, the diagnosis and treatment of cancer has an effect on both the patient and their partner.
- Dyadic efficacy is a term that captures the process through which couples work together as a unit to cope with a stressful event.
- To our knowledge, there is no known measure of dyadic efficacy that allows for a greater understanding of how couples work together as a team to cope with cancer.
- Building on research completed among other health populations, the Health Psychology Research Group is designing a tool to measure the extent to which dyadic efficacy is experienced among cancer patients and their intimate partners.
Full Abstract
Coming soon
Self-compassion
Investigators: Annett Körner, PhD, Adina Coriou, PhD Cand., Stephanie Gumuchian, PhD Cand., Chelsea Moran, MA student, Kyla Brophy, MA student
- While not universally endorsed, the most widely used definition of self-compassion is Dr. Kristin Neff’s conceptualization of the construct as encompassing three bipolar dimensions: a) the presence of self-kindness in contrast to self-judgment; b) a sense of common humanity referring to the recognition that failure and hardship are shared human experiences as opposed to a sense of isolation; and c) mindfulness rather than over-identification with negative thoughts and emotions (Neff, 2003).
- Our research team is working toward reliable and valid ways of assessing self-compassion.
- We are also interested in self-compassion as a psychological characteristic that fosters resilience when facing interpersonal, mental, or physical problems.
Full Abstract
Self-compassion, typically operationalized as the total score of the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS; Neff, 2003b), has been shown to be related to increased psychological well-being and lower depression in students of the social sciences, users of psychology websites and psychotherapy patients. The current study builds on the existing literature by examining the link between self-compassion and depressive symptomatology in a sample representative of the German general population (n = 2,404). The SCS subscales of self-judgment, isolation, and over-identification, and the “self-coldness”, composite score, which encompass these three negative subscales, consistently differed between subsamples of individuals without any depressive symptoms, with any depressive syndromes, and with major depressive disorder. The contribution of the positive SCS subscales of self-kindness, common humanity, and mindfulness to the variance in depressive symptomatology was almost negligible. However, when combined to a “self-compassion composite”, the positive SCS subscales significantly moderated the relationship between “self-coldness” and depressive symptoms in the general population. This speaks for self-compassion having the potential to buffer self-coldness related to depression—providing an argument for interventions that foster self-caring, kind, and forgiving attitudes towards oneself.
Full paper