Abstract (eng)
Cognitive constructions concerning nature, possible causes and the treatment of an illness can be summarized as illness representations, which communicate with coping strategies, healthrelated quality of life (Leventhal, Meyer & Nerenz, 1980) and social resources as well (Alpers et al., 2003). Over recent years, a multiplicity of cancer-specific Internet platforms, which offer a range of informational and emotional support, developed. In this context, taking part in those platforms can lead to an increase of health-related quality of life (Cline, 1999). The main purpose of this online research was to examine the meaning of illness representations for coping with illness and the outcome variable “quality of life”; additionally, the cancer patients were asked to point out their specific health-related Internet use and
attitudes towards online health care. Beside a sociodemographic complex of questions the following measuring instruments were used: The IPQ Illness Perception Questionnaire (Weinman et. al, 1996) measuring illness representations, the FKV-LIS Freiburger
Fragebogen zur Krankheitsverarbeitung (Muthny, 1989) examining coping strategies, the SF-12 Fragebogen zum Gesundheitszustand (Bullinger & Kirchberger, 1998) measuring health-related quality of life, and the ATOHC Attitudes towards online Health Care (LaCoursiere, 2001b), which illustrated attitudes to health-related Internet use. The findings confirm the postulated Common sense Model of Illness Representations
(Leventhal et al., 1980); mediated by depressive coping (FKV-LIS), a high disease identity (IPQ) is associated with low quality of life scores (SF-12). Participants did not perceive an
influence of health-related Internet use on their state of both physical and psychological health, for which the confirmed sparse confidence in information (ATOHC) can be seen as a
possible cause.