En förutsättning för att undvika depression och istället uppleva posttraumatiskt växande (PTG), efter att ha upplevt belastande livshändelser, kan vara känslan av sammanhang (KASAM). Denna studie syftar till att undersöka om det finns en skillnad mellan belastande livshändelser avseende negativa utfallet depression samt undersöka om en stark KASAM kan vara avgörande för att individen istället utvecklar PTG. I studien undersöks 150 studerande vid Örebro universitet. Av resultatet framgår det att studenterna med högt värde av belastande livshändelser är mer deprimerade än studenterna med lågt värde, oberoende av KASAM. Dock hittades ingen signifikant skillnad mellan belastande livshändelser och KASAM avseende PTG.Huruvida belastande händelser utvecklar en positiv eller negativ förändring hos individen kan istället avgöras av personens tolkning, hantering av situationen. / A basis to avoid depression and instead experience posttraumatic growth (PTG), after stressful life events, may be a sense of coherence (SOC). This study investigates whether there is a difference between stressful life events regarding the negative outcome depression and to examine whether a strong sense of coherence can be essential to develop PTG instead. 150 students at Örebro University were examined. The result showed that students with high value of stressful life events are more depressed than students with low value, independent of SOC. However, no significant difference was found between stressful life events and SOC regarding to PTG.Whether a stressful event develops a positive or negative change in the individual may instead be determined by how the person interprets and handles the situation.

Background and objectives: Despite a generally good prognosis, testicular cancer can be a life-altering event. We explored perceived positive and negative life changes after testicular cancer in terms of frequency, demographic and disease-related predictors, and associations with depression and anxiety. Materials and methods: All testicular cancer survivors receiving follow-up care at two specialized outpatient treatment facilities were approached at follow-up visits or via mail. We assessed a total of N = 164 patients (66% participation rate, mean time since diagnosis: 11.6 years, SD = 7.4) by the Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI, modified version assessing positive and negative changes for each of 21 items), Patient-Health-Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), and Generalized-Anxiety- Disorder-Scale-7 (GAD-7). We conducted controlled multivariate regression analyses. Results: Most survivors (87%) reported at least one positive change (mean number: 7.2, SD = 5.0, possible range: 0–21). The most frequent perceived positive changes were greater appreciation of life (62%), changed priorities in life (62%), and ability rely on others (51%). At least one negative change was perceived by 33% (mean number of changes: 1.1, SD = 2.5). Negative changes were most frequent for decreases in self-reliance (14%), personal strength (11%), and ability to express emotions (9%). A higher socioeconomic status was associated with more positive changes ( = 0.25, 95% CI 0.08 to 0.42); no other association with demographic and disease-related predictors emerged. While positive life changes were not associated with depression ( = 0.05, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.07) and anxiety ( = 0.00, 95% CI 0.13 to 0.13), more negative life changes were significantly associated with higher depression ( = 0.15, 95% CI 0.03 to 0.27) and anxiety ( = 0.23, 95% CI 0.11 to 0.36). There was no significant interaction of positive and negative changes on depression or anxiety. Conclusions: Although positive life changes after testicular cancer are common, a significant number of survivors perceive negative changes in life domains that have been primarily investigated in terms of personal growth. Early identification of and psychosocial support for patients who perceive predominantly negative changes may contribute to prevention of prolonged symptoms of anxiety and depression.