I Wanted You to Know: Breast Cancer Survivors' Control of Workplace Communication About Cancer

• Published in: Journal of occupational health psychology 2015-10, Vol.20 (4), p.446-456
• Main Authors: Robinson, Lynne, Kocum, Lucie, Loughlin, Catherine, Bryson, Lindsay, Dimoff, Jennifer K.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Breast Neoplasms; Breast Neoplasms - psychology; Breast Neoplasms - therapy; Communication; Experiences (Events); Female; Human; Humans; Internal-External Control; Interpersonal Relations; Interviews as Topic; Middle Aged; Occupational Stress; Social Support; Survivors; Survivors - psychology; Working Conditions; Workplace - psychology
• ISSN: 1076-8998; 1939-1307
• DOI: 10.1037/a0039142

Of working women diagnosed with cancer, approximately one-third will have breast cancer. Communicating about their cancer plays an important role in their workplace experience. It is challenging but helpful in eliciting needed social support and accommodations. Fully understanding such communication experiences is important in order to facilitate the well-being and success of such women in their workplaces. A qualitative study permits a richer account of the details of these workplace communications, and a deeper understanding of how women manage the complex and multifaceted communication process. This study used thematic analysis of semistructured interviews from 19 women working full time at the time of their breast cancer diagnosis. We found 3 themes that encapsulated unfolding individual experiences, representing a complex interplay of challenges to maintaining a sense of personal control in workplace responses: challenges to control posed by the experience of sharing information in the workplace about the woman's cancer, women's very individual attempts to control how information about their cancer was shared, and the mixed responses of those who were told. The result was unique individual trajectories in which empathic responses tailored to the individual's needs and preferences were most helpful. These findings can provide guidance on managing cancer communication for survivors, and on how to best support and accommodate women workers with breast cancer, facilitating their ability to control how their cancer impacts their work experience. Our website (http://www.iwantedyoutoknow.ca/) provides a video, tip sheet, and other resources for facilitating supportive communication in the workplace.