As the number of cancer survivors continues to grow in the United States, researchers have been eager to find ways to help this population thrive during and after treatment. Despite the growing body of literature about survivorship, psychologists Trisha Raque-Bogdan, PhD, and Ryan Duffy, PhD, noticed a gap in the research.
"Few studies have explored whether work is a valuable coping strategy for these survivors," explains Raque-Bogdan, an assistant professor in counseling psychology at the University of Denver.
Last year APF gave a $13,000 grant to Raque-Bogdan and Duffy, an associate professor at the University of Florida, to investigate that question. "When people receive a diagnosis, providers are not typically talking to them about how to make work-related decisions, and we are trying to get a sense of whether this is a critical discussion to have," Raque-Bogdan says. "We suspect work has many important roles for cancer survivors, such as providing a sense of normalcy, goals for the future, and access to insurance and medical care."
Participants in the study work at least 20 hours a week, and their responses to surveys throughout a one-year period will help the researchers better understand the degree to which work is providing meaning and self-efficacy for coping with cancer. The study will also explore how much an organization's support of a survivor after diagnosis affects the sense of meaning and purpose at work.
Raque-Bogdan, who specializes in the intersection of physical health and career development, became interested in this research area in graduate school when she started working with a coalition for young breast cancer survivors.
"I was really struck by how much work was connected to their emotional and social resources," she says. "Work can be a very important way of helping cancer survivors cultivate a sense of control and purpose because a cancer diagnosis can threaten those very things."
With an estimated 14.5 million cancer survivors alive in the United States today, Raque-Bogdan and Duffy hope their study will shed light on whether it is important to provide resources that will empower survivors to foster a sense of meaning in work.
The annual Bruce and Jane Walsh Grant, which honors the memory of psychologist John Holland, PhD, funds research on how personality, culture and environment influence work behavior and health. For more information about the grant, visit APFopens in new window.
