Comparison of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes, a cross-sectional study

Abstract Background Identity crisis during adolescence is an important issue; on the other hand, adolescents suffering from chronic diseases such as cancer and diabetes increase the challenges of this period and the importance of successfully overcoming it. The present study was conducted with the a...

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Main Authors: Mohammadjavad Hassani, Fateme Mohammadi, Salman Khazaie, Marzie Effat Panah, Arash Khalili
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2025-08-01
Series:BMC Pediatrics
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-025-05672-y
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author Mohammadjavad Hassani
Fateme Mohammadi
Salman Khazaie
Marzie Effat Panah
Arash Khalili
author_facet Mohammadjavad Hassani
Fateme Mohammadi
Salman Khazaie
Marzie Effat Panah
Arash Khalili
author_sort Mohammadjavad Hassani
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background Identity crisis during adolescence is an important issue; on the other hand, adolescents suffering from chronic diseases such as cancer and diabetes increase the challenges of this period and the importance of successfully overcoming it. The present study was conducted with the aim of comparing identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted from August 2022 to November 2024 on 300 adolescents within the age range of 15–17 years with cancer and diabetes (150 in each group) who were selected with convenience sampling. Data were collected using demographic characteristics and identity crisis questionnaires. Data analysis was performed using SPSS-22 software. The significance level in all tests was less than 0.05. Results The mean of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes was 130.82 ± 2.38 and 123.49 ± 2.45, respectively. The mean total score of identity crisis and scores of areas of dissatisfaction with life, hopelessness, sadness (p < 0.001), aimlessness, worthlessness, and anxiety (p < 0.01) were higher in adolescents with cancer than in those with diabetes. The variables of the age of adolescents, cancer duration, family income, and education of the mother predicted 56.63% of the variance changes in the identity crisis of adolescents with cancer and 55.76% of the variance changes in the identity crisis of adolescents with diabetes. Conclusion Identity crisis is one of the important challenges in the lives of adolescents with cancer and diabetes. These adolescents experience moderate to severe identity crises, and this condition is more common in adolescents with cancer. Clinical trial number Not applicable.
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spelling doaj-art-adcc26f63bea41da90174f4134ecbd222025-08-24T11:50:34ZengBMCBMC Pediatrics1471-24312025-08-0125111010.1186/s12887-025-05672-yComparison of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes, a cross-sectional studyMohammadjavad Hassani0Fateme Mohammadi1Salman Khazaie2Marzie Effat Panah3Arash Khalili4Student Research Center, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Hamadan University of Medical SciencesDepartment of Pediatric Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Mother and Child Care Research Center, Institute of Health Sciences and Technology, Hamadan University of Medical SciencesHealth Sciences Research Center, Health Sciences & Technology Research Institute, Hamadan University of Medical SciencesDepartment of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Sina (Farshchian) Educational and Medical Center, Hamadan University of Medical SciencesDepartment of Pediatric Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Hamadan University of Medical SciencesAbstract Background Identity crisis during adolescence is an important issue; on the other hand, adolescents suffering from chronic diseases such as cancer and diabetes increase the challenges of this period and the importance of successfully overcoming it. The present study was conducted with the aim of comparing identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted from August 2022 to November 2024 on 300 adolescents within the age range of 15–17 years with cancer and diabetes (150 in each group) who were selected with convenience sampling. Data were collected using demographic characteristics and identity crisis questionnaires. Data analysis was performed using SPSS-22 software. The significance level in all tests was less than 0.05. Results The mean of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes was 130.82 ± 2.38 and 123.49 ± 2.45, respectively. The mean total score of identity crisis and scores of areas of dissatisfaction with life, hopelessness, sadness (p < 0.001), aimlessness, worthlessness, and anxiety (p < 0.01) were higher in adolescents with cancer than in those with diabetes. The variables of the age of adolescents, cancer duration, family income, and education of the mother predicted 56.63% of the variance changes in the identity crisis of adolescents with cancer and 55.76% of the variance changes in the identity crisis of adolescents with diabetes. Conclusion Identity crisis is one of the important challenges in the lives of adolescents with cancer and diabetes. These adolescents experience moderate to severe identity crises, and this condition is more common in adolescents with cancer. Clinical trial number Not applicable.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-025-05672-yIdentity crisisCancerDiabetesAdolescence
spellingShingle Mohammadjavad Hassani
Fateme Mohammadi
Salman Khazaie
Marzie Effat Panah
Arash Khalili
Comparison of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes, a cross-sectional study
BMC Pediatrics
Identity crisis
Cancer
Diabetes
Adolescence
title Comparison of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes, a cross-sectional study
title_full Comparison of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes, a cross-sectional study
title_fullStr Comparison of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes, a cross-sectional study
title_full_unstemmed Comparison of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes, a cross-sectional study
title_short Comparison of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes, a cross-sectional study
title_sort comparison of identity crisis in adolescents with cancer and diabetes a cross sectional study
topic Identity crisis
Cancer
Diabetes
Adolescence
url https://doi.org/10.1186/s12887-025-05672-y
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AT marzieeffatpanah comparisonofidentitycrisisinadolescentswithcanceranddiabetesacrosssectionalstudy
AT arashkhalili comparisonofidentitycrisisinadolescentswithcanceranddiabetesacrosssectionalstudy