The mediating roles of intimate relationships and constructive communication in the association between self-disclosure and benefit finding among patients with colorectal cancer.

[OBJECTIVE] This study investigated the association between self-disclosure and benefit finding in patients with colorectal cancer, with a particular focus on the sequential mediating roles of intimate relationships and constructive communication.

[METHODS] From July 2023 to September 2024, a total of 306 patients with colorectal cancer were recruited through convenience sampling at a tertiary hospital in Anhui Province, China. Participants completed a demographic and clinical questionnaire, the Chinese version of the Benefit Finding Scale (BFS), the Distress Disclosure Index (DDI), the Communication Pattern Questionnaire (CPQ), and the Quality of Relationship Index (QRI). Correlation analysis and structural equation modeling were used to test the proposed mediation model.

[RESULTS] The mean benefit finding score was 63.40 ​± ​17.41. Scores for self-disclosure, intimate relationships, and constructive communication were 44.38 ​± ​9.29, 29.69 ​± ​7.45, and 11.86 ​± ​6.14, respectively. All three variables were positively correlated with benefit finding ( ​= ​0.435, 0.530, and 0.498; all ​< ​0.01). Mediation analysis showed that intimate relationships and constructive communication jointly mediated the relationship between self-disclosure and benefit finding, with an indirect effect of 0.071, accounting for 13.55% of the total effect.

[CONCLUSIONS] In patients with colorectal cancer, self-disclosure may enhance benefit finding by improving intimacy and promoting constructive communication. These findings suggest that psychosocial interventions targeting interpersonal processes may support emotional well-being and psychological adjustment in this population.