Content area
Full Text
Summary
This article provides a critical reflection of the debate regarding the adoption of positive thinking in the care and recovery of patients with cancer. Positive thinking is an approach characterised by adopting a fighting spirit, taking control and being strong and brave. The association of positive thinking with a range of favourable outcomes has been challenged.
Keywords
Cancer nursing, patient care, positive thinking, psychology
These keywords are based on subject headings from the British Nursing Index. All articles are subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software. For author and research article guidelines visit the Nursing Standard home page at www.nursing-standard.co.uk. For related articles visit our online archive and search using the keywords.
POSITIVE THINKING IS often presented as an approach to living and coping with illness and is characterised by adopting a fighting spirit, taking control and being strong and brave (Wilkinson and Kitzinger 2000, Petticrew et al 2002). Positive thinking has been associated with a range of favourable outcomes, including improved survival and enhanced coping.
The power and promotion of positive thinking is explicit or implicit in media portrayals of cancer and is also present in some of the research literature surrounding approaches to coping with cancer. Psychological interventions have been developed to enable patients to adopt coping strategies (Greer et al 1992, Petticrew et al 2002). It has been proposed that adopting a positive approach to cancer is both socially acceptable and culturally valued (Ehrenreich 2010a).
Positive thinking can be presented as a clearly defined approach to cancer that has wholly beneficial outcomes for the patient. As such, it can be interpreted as the attitude that patients should adopt. In contrast to this perspective, the authors suggest that positive thinking is a complex concept that represents a range of beliefs, attitudes and activities. They propose that the value placed on a particular interpretation of positive thinking may lead to potentially harmful outcomes for some patients. The intention of this article is to explore the effect of positive thinking on nursing. It is important that nurses are aware of the debates surrounding positive thinking to be able to support patients in developing helpful approaches to their illness.
Background
Health practitioners and academics from a range of...