Quality of Life in Children Surviving Cancer: A Personality and Multi-Informant Perspective
1 Ghent University, 2 Erasmus University, Rotterdam, and 3 Pediatric Hemato-Oncology Unit, University Hospital, Ghent
All correspondence should be sent to Barbara De Clercq, Department of Developmental, Personality, and Social Psychology, Ghent University, H. Dunantlaan 2, B-9000 Belgium. E-mail: BarbaraJ.DeClercq{at}ugent.be.
Objective To describe quality of life (QoL) of children surviving cancer in relation to their personality, using self- and maternal reports and examining differences with healthy referents. Method Sixty-seven children who survived childhood cancer were compared with eighty-one healthy children on QoL and personality characteristics. Results Children who survived cancer reported higher QoL than healthy children, whereas there were no differences for personality. Two main effects emerged for informant with children rating themselves as less neurotic and more conscientious than their mothers. The correspondence between mothers and children was substantially higher for survivors for QoL and personality ratings. QoL and trait measures share substantial variance, and personality traits significantly predict QoL. Parental personality ratings explained child QoL beyond children’s personality ratings. Conclusions Personality traits contribute to quality of life, indicating that personality significantly influences child’s quality of life beyond the experience of a negative life event such as surviving cancer and its treatment. From a diagnostic perspective, parental trait ratings are informative in addition to children’s ratings of personality to understand children’s QoL.
Key words: quality of life; personality; children; cancer.
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