[Social support and social stress in tumor patients and their partners]

Social support is widely believed to be an important buffer against stress in patients coping with cancer. Support efforts can, however, in turn prove to become a source of distress in themselves, both in patients and support providers. The present study was designed to explore the connections between support and emotional distress. N = 120 lung cancer patients and their relatives (n = 57) are interviewed at three intervals. Social support is assessed by multiple methods: Content analysis, a questionnaire and a confidant rating performed by experts. Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses are combined. Content-analytical and self-report data show a correlation of support efforts and emotional distress. In the confidant rating, however, the expected differences between supportive and non-supportive spousal relationships emerge. The results are discussed from an interactional point of view.