Personality and Spirituality as Predictors of Mental Health and Salivary Alpha-Amylase Activity in Breast Cancer Survivors

Objectives: To determine the relative predictive validity of personality and spirituality for mental health and salivary alpha-amylase (sAA) in breast cancer (BC) survivors.

Sample & Setting: 23 BC survivors participated in a single-group, cross-sectional study.

Methods & Variables: Predictor variables included personality and spiritual variables. Outcome variables included subjective physical and mental health outcomes and sAA, a neuroimmune biomarker.

Results: Hierarchical regressions indicated that (a) conscientiousness and forgiveness independently predict 38% and 11% of variance in mental health scores, respectively; and (b) conscientiousness and forgiveness independently predict 15% and 24% of the variance in sAA, respectively. Consistent with psychoneuroimmunology theory, personality and spiritual variables independently influence subjective mental health and neuroimmune activity in BC survivors.

Implications for Nursing: Nurses should be aware of BC survivors’ personality characteristics and spiritual dispositions so that distinct interventions can be offered to promote mental health and reduce stress-related neuroimmune inflammation.