The relationship between personality traits of cancer patients and their preferences when receiving bad news

Objective This study aimed to determine the relationship between the personality traits of cancer patients and their preferences when receiving bad news. Methods In this descriptive correlational study, 200 cancer patients who were selected by the continuous sampling method participated. Patients self-reportedly completed the demographic and medical information questionnaire, the Measure of Patients' Preference (MPP) scale, and the short form of the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI). Results The majority of participants were female (73%), 42.5% had higher education, and 47.5% suffered from breast cancer. In this study, the mean scores of extraversion and neuroticism in patients were 14.59 +/- 2.47 and 15.17 +/- 3.43, respectively. Regarding patients' preferences for receiving bad news, the score obtained by them in the content category was greater compared to two categories of context and support. This study showed a significant and negative correlation between neuroticism and patients' preferences in the support category (P < 0.001 and r = - 0.265). Regarding the categories of the MPP, there was a significant relationship between gender (P = 0.018) and marital status (P = 0.049) with context category, education (P = 0.011) with content category, and marital status (P = 0.003) and employment (P = 0.009) with support category. Conclusion Personality traits and demographic characteristics of cancer patients can influence their preferences for receiving bad news. Therefore, the consideration of these traits by health care team members is of particular importance to communicate with and deliver bad news to patients.

Automated summary

This study aimed to explore the relationship between cancer patients' personality traits and their preferences for receiving bad news. The majority of participants were female with higher education, and the study found a significant negative correlation between neuroticism and patients' preferences for support when receiving bad news. Demographic characteristics such as gender, education, marital status, and employment were also found to influence patients' preferences for receiving bad news.