# Social support and psychological distress of patients with pituitary adenomas: chain-mediated effects of self-efficacy and rumination

## TL;DR

This study explores how social support affects psychological distress in pituitary adenoma patients through self-efficacy and rumination.

## Contribution

It identifies a chain-mediated effect of self-efficacy and rumination linking social support to psychological distress in these patients.

## Key findings

- Social support positively correlates with self-efficacy in patients.
- Self-efficacy and social support negatively predict rumination and psychological distress.
- Rumination mediates the indirect effect of social support on psychological distress.

## Abstract

Psychological distress in patients with pituitary adenomas affects their quality of life and is influenced by various aspects such as sociocultural factors, personal resources, and stressors. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the chain-mediated role of self-efficacy and rumination in the relationship between social support and psychological distress.

The study was based on the Wilson-Cleary model of health-related quality of life and self-efficacy theory. We investigated 500 patients with surgically treated pituitary adenomas in three tertiary hospitals in Shaanxi Province, China. We used the “Social Support” and “General Self-Efficacy” scales, “Rumination Scale,” and the “Psychological Distress in Patients with Pituitary Adenomas” questionnaire to conduct the survey, and the data were analyzed using structural equation modeling and bootstrap methods to examine the relationships between the variables.

The results showed that there was a significant positive correlation between social support and self-efficacy, social support and self-efficacy negatively predicted rumination and psychological distress, respectively. Rumination significant positive correlation with psychological distress, and social support, indirectly affected psychological distress through the chain-mediated effect of self-efficacy and rumination. This represents a compound multiple mediating effect on psychological distress.

Clinical practitioners should enhance social support for patients with pituitary adenomas, improve patients’ self-efficacy, and mitigate rumination to reduce patients’ psychological distress.