Influence of psychological need satisfaction on self-neglect among patients with oral mucositis after chemoradiotherapy for head and neck cancer: The mediating roles of family resilience and psychological resilience
Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to explore the relationships among family resilience, psychological resilience, psychological need satisfaction, and self-neglect, with a particular focus on analyzing the mediating roles of family resilience and psychological resilience between basic psychological need satisfaction and self-neglect. The purpose was to provide a theoretical basis and practical guidance for improving the psychological state of patients with oral mucositis (OM) after chemoradiotherapy (CRT) for head and neck cancer (HNC). Methods: This retrospective study selected OM-patients post-CRT for HNC from Affiliated Hospital of Jiangnan University between January 2022 and December 2024 as the research subjects. A total of 312 patients were surveyed using a general information questionnaire, the Basic Psychological Needs Scale (BPNS), the Scale of the Elderly Self-Neglect (SESN), the Family Resilience Questionnaire (FRQ), and the 10-item Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC-10). Structural equation modeling and the Bootstrap method were used to test the mediating effects of family resilience and psychological resilience between psychological need satisfaction and self-neglect in these patients. Results: The scores of patients on the BPNS, SESN, FRQ, and CD-RISC-10 were 5.35 ± 1.05, 8.16 ± 5.607, 78.56 ± 12.50, and 23.45 ± 8.03, respectively. Statistically significant differences were found in BPNS, FRQ, and CD-RISC-10 scores based on residence, education, living situation, economic pressure, metastasis status, and complications (P < 0.05). SESN scores also showed significant differences across age, residence, education, living situation, economic pressure, metastasis, and complications (P < 0.05). Psychological need satisfaction negatively correlated with self-neglect (r = −0.462, P < 0.01) and positively with family and psychological resilience (r = 0.546 and 0.497, both P < 0.01). A structural equation model indicated good fit indices, revealing that basic psychological need satisfaction negatively impacted self-neglect, with family and psychological resilience serving as significant mediators. Conclusion: The satisfaction of basic psychological needs in OM-patients post-CRT for HNC can directly or indirectly affect their self-neglect through family resilience and psychological resilience. In daily nursing care, it is possible to avoid self-neglect in patients by meeting their basic psychological needs and enhancing their family resilience and psychological resilience.
Copyright (c) 2026 Linhong Gu, Zhuang Ding, Yan Zhou, Yu Dong
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
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