The King's Connection Magazine Volume 24 // Number 1 | Page 22
ALUMNI PROFILE
Understanding
how to cope with cancer
By Josh Noble, Manager of Alumni Relations
A
s many Canadians know too well, a cancer diagnosis
comes with a host of challenges, fears, and
consequences. For King’s alumna DANIELLE BROSSEAU
(BA, ’04) it is these challenges, fears and consequences that
represent the field of her academic research.
Brosseau, originally from Edmonton, AB, completed a
bachelor of arts in Psychology at King’s. A strong student
with a passion for seeing individuals flourish, she decided
to pursue a master of arts in Counselling Psychology at
Trinity Western University (TWU) in Langley, B.C. It was
during her time at TWU that she first encountered the field
of psychosocial oncology. This area of study underscores
the belief that cancer is more than a biological diagnosis
with often far reaching psychological, social and spiritual
effects for individuals and their loved ones. With the assertion
that cancer care must extend beyond physical treatment,
researchers in psychosocial oncology attempt to better
understand how to mitigate the stress of a cancer diagnosis
and support constructive coping strategies for patients and
their families.
In her master’s thesis Brosseau examined the link between
relationship quality and levels of stress reported by cancer
patients and their intimate partners. Results suggested
that couples with higher quality relationships (i.e., better
communication skills) tended to report fewer symptoms of
stress than those in lower quality relationships.
Upon completion of her master’s in 2010, Brosseau looked
for a counselling psychology program with professors
researching in the area of psychosocial oncology, ultimately
choosing McGill University in Montreal. At McGill she is
working in the Health Psychology Research Group, under
the supervision of Dr. Annett Körner. Her interest in how
to support couples coping with cancer is focused on
dyadic-efficacy—a term referring to a person’s confidence
in his or her ability to cope together with a partner. Her
research focuses on understanding how the ability to cope
as a team may lessen the burden patients and their partners’
20 /// The King’s Connection /// Summer 2014
experience. Dyadic efficacy has not yet been studied in the
cancer context, thus this research will focus on fundamental
tool-building in order to accurately assess dyadic efficacy and
enable new avenues of research.
In 2013 Brosseau and her husband Fred Tappenden
welcomed their first child, Olivia. Danielle has been on
maternity leave since welcoming Olivia into the world and
looks forward to going back to finish the final two years
of her PhD soon.