摘要:

Objectives.Research on illness perceptions and their associations with psychological adjustment to medical conditions has mostly focused on individuals coping with chronic diseases. The objective of the current study was to expand this research to the study of couples by examining the perceptions of infertility among couples undergoing treatment and their associations with each partner's psychological adjustment.Design.The study was cross‐sectional and included two samples that differed in the stage of treatment: Sample 1 included 72 couples at their first visit to an infertility clinic and Sample 2 included 49 couples at various stages of treatment.Methods.Participants filled in the Illness Perception Questionnaire regarding the timeline, consequences and controllability of their fertility problem and Infertility‐Specific Distress and Well‐being Scales. Dyadic analyses were conducted on the basis of the Actor–Partner Interdependence Model (APIM).Results.The partners differed in their perceptions of infertility and their distress. Partners' psychological adjustment was related to their perceptions of the fertility problem. Among couples at their first visit, perceptions of consequences of both partners were additively related to their distress whereas controllability perceptions interacted in their association with women's distress: Highest distress was reported by women who perceived low controllability whereas their partner perceived high controllability, compared with couples who reported similar (high or low) levels of controllability.Conclusions.A dyadic approach to studying illness perceptions can uncover patterns of couples at risk for poor adjustment. This is especially needed in contexts such as infertility, where both partners are involved and affected by the health

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X279288

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Objectives.Patients' beliefs regarding illness and treatment are important to understand responses to chronic disease. The present study aimed (i) to assess the illness representations and treatment disruption beliefs of patients with end stage renal disease (ESRD), (ii) to determine whether beliefs about illness and treatment differ between different renal replacement therapies, and (iii) to examine whether these beliefs are associated with health related quality of life (HQoL).Method.A cross‐sectional sample of 262 ESRD patients, 145 dialysis and 117 kidney transplant recipients completed the illness perceptions questionnaire, the illness effects questionnaire, the treatment effects questionnaire and the short form 36 health survey. Measures of ESRD severity/co‐morbidity and biochemistry were also collected.Results.HQoL levels were higher in transplant patients. Dialysis patients reported more symptoms associated with ESRD (p<.001), stronger chronic timeline beliefs (p<.001), lower control beliefs (p<.05), and more illness and treatment disruptiveness (ps<.01). Illness and treatment disruptiveness, consequences and identity were inversely associated with HQoL whereas control was positively associated with HQoL. Multiple regressions indicated that treatment and illness disruptiveness, identity and consequences beliefs accounted for 22.9–67.6% of the variance HQoL although specific multivariate correlates differed across physical and emotional HQoL and between dialysis and transplantation.Conclusions.The beliefs that patients hold about their illness and treatment appear to be related to the type renal replacement therapy being undertaken. These cognitions have associations with HQoL in dialysis and transplantation that are independent of those of socio‐demographic and clinical

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X292355

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Objectives.Causal attributions form a significant part of how people understand and represent illness. The present study explored the structure of causal attributions in obesity using network analysis and examined the specific properties of this network in terms of extent, patterning, and direction.Design.Cross‐sectional study.Methods.Seventy‐two obese individuals (22 male, 50 female) completed a questionnaire, which asked them to rate the strength of all causal relationships between nine possible causes of obesity. Inductive eliminative analysis (IEA) was used to produce the networks and multidimensional scaling (MDS) determined the spatial structure of the network.Results.A high percentage (70.4%) of participants endorsed the resultant network. Analysis revealed a two‐dimensional solution, with the MDS statistics of low level of stress (.05) and a dispersion accounted for (DAF) of .95 indicating a good fit between the data and the solution. The results indicatedtraumatic events,family problems, andaddictive personalitywere perceived as distal causes ofover‐eatingandcomfort eating, whilemore passive behaviours,less physical activity,over‐eating, andcomfort eatingwere perceived as proximal causes ofobesity.Family historydid not contribute to the network.Conclusions.Obese individuals appeared to hold a highly consensual and complex representation of their illness. From a multidisciplinary treatment perspective, this understanding would seem valuable in relation to achieving behavio

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X292788

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Introduction.The diagnosis and subsequent treatment for early stage breast cancer is stressful for partners. Little is known about the role of cognitive and social processes predicting the longitudinal course of partners' psychosocial adaptation. This study evaluated the role of cognitive and social processing in partner psychological adaptation to early stage breast cancer, evaluating both main and moderator effect models. Moderating effects for meaning making, acceptance, and positive reappraisal on the predictive association of searching for meaning, emotional processing, and emotional expression on partner psychological distress were examined.Materials and methods.Partners of women diagnosed with early stage breast cancer were evaluated shortly after the ill partner's diagnosis (N=253), 9 (N=167), and 18 months (N=149) later. Partners completed measures of emotional expression, emotional processing, acceptance, meaning making, and general and cancer‐specific distress at all time points.Results.Lower satisfaction with partner support predicted greater global distress, and greater use of positive reappraisal was associated with greater distress. The predicted moderator effects for found meaning on the associations between the search for meaning and cancer‐specific distress were found and similar moderating effects for positive reappraisal on the associations between emotional expression and global distress and for acceptance on the association between emotional processing and cancer‐specific distress were found.Conclusions.Results indicate several cognitive–social processes directly predict partner distress. However, moderator effect models in which the effects of partners' processing depends upon whether these efforts result in changes in perceptions of the cancer experience may add to the understanding of partners' adaptation to

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X298458

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Objectives.Individual differences may exist in the psychological distress that women with breast cancer experience as a result of disease‐related changes in both their own needs and the needs of their social environment. In the current study, we investigated whether the negative impact of one's personal needs versus the needs of others depends on the self‐regulatory focus of women with breast cancer, that is, the extent to which they are motivated by promotion or prevention goals.Design and methods.In an on‐line survey among 113 women with breast cancer, participants were primed on either their personal needs or the needs of others. Subsequently, women's perception of having been distressed in the past week was measured with the CES‐D.Results.As expected, promotion focus was found to moderate the effect of this experimental manipulation: after concentrating on their own needs, women with breast cancer with a strong promotion focus perceived themselves as having been less distressed in the past week than those with a weak promotion focus, whereas promotion focus was not related to distress when women concentrated on the needs of others. Prevention focus, on the other hand, did not moderate the relationship between the experimental conditions and perceived distress, but it proved to be a strong predictor of perceived distress, independent of whether patients were focusing on their own needs or the needs of others.Conclusion.By identifying the role of a promotion focus in the relationship between patients' personal needs and their perception of distress, the current study highlights the importance of individual differences in the experience of breast

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X299673

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Objectives.Time perspective describes how individuals conceptualize and value future events, and may be related to health behaviours. Research to date has focused on addictive behaviours, used a variety of different measures of time perspective, and not explored the role of personality. This work aimed to: explore the relationships between: five previously used measures of time perspective; time perspective and the broad domains of the five‐factor model of personality; and time perspective and smoking, body mass, and physical activity after controlling for socio‐demographics and personality.Design.Cross‐sectional self‐report data were collected using a web based survey.Methods.Participants (N=423) were recruited via local community internet message boards in US urban areas. The survey collected information on: delay discount rate, the Consideration of Future Consequences Scale (CFCS), the future scale of the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory (ZTPI), subjective probability of living to age 75, and time period for financial planning, the five‐factor personality inventory, smoking, body mass index (BMI), and physical activity.Results.After controlling for socio‐demographics, most markers of time perspective were significantly correlated with each other, but the strength of correlations was rarely strong. Conscientiousness, Neuroticism, Agreeableness, and Openness were associated with some markers of time perspective. After controlling for socio‐demographic and personality domains, only CFCS score was associated with smoking status and BMI.Conclusions.There is some overlap between previously used markers of time perspective and the five‐factor personality domains but this is neither strong nor consistent. Smoking and BMI, but not physical activity, are associated with CFCS, but not other measures of t

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X299664

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Objectives.Numeracy, the ability to process basic mathematical concepts, may affect responses to graphical displays of health risk information. Displays of probabilistic risk information using grouped dots are easier to understand than displays using dispersed dots. However, dispersed dots may better convey the randomness with which health threats occur, so increasing perceived susceptibility. We hypothesized that low numeracy participants would better understand risks presented using grouped dot displays, while high numeracy participants would have good understanding, regardless of display type. Moreover, we predicted that dispersed dot displays, in contrast to grouped dot displays, would increase risk perceptions and worry only for highly numerate individuals.Design and method.One hundred and forty smokers read vignettes asking them to imagine being at risk of Crohn's disease, in a 2(display type: dispersed/grouped dots)×3(risk magnitude: 3%/6%/50%)×2(numeracy: high/low) design. They completed measures of risk comprehension, perceived susceptibility and worry.Results.More numerate participants had better objective risk comprehension, but this effect was not moderated by display type. There was marginally significant support for the predicted numeracy × display type interaction for worry about Crohn's disease, but not for perceived susceptibility to the condition.Conclusions.Dispersed dot displays somewhat increase worry in highly numerate individuals, but only numeracy influenced objective risk comprehension. The most effective display type for communicating risk information will depend on the numeracy of the population and the goal(s) of the communicati

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X304432

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Objectives.This study aimed to compare and contrast detailed accounts of a community sample of women, with prospectively defined low or high premenstrual symptoms, highlighting differences/similarities.Methods.Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 16 women (9 with ‘low’ and 7 with ‘high’ symptom levels) and analysed using template analysis.Results.‘Low symptom’ women perceived themselves as generally laid back but demonstrated a need for organization and control in the family environment. They accepted less than perfect relationships, compared themselves favourably to others and perceived themselves as having strong support networks. There was a negative perception of the introduction to menarche but this was coupled with strong maternal support. ‘High symptom’ women showed patterns of perfectionism, an emphasis on self‐sacrifice and unfavourable comparison of self with others. They reported feeling alone, overwhelmed by tasks and experienced relationships as characterized by unresolved tensions. Menarche was viewed as a positive experience but accompanied by low maternal support. Both groups viewed their symptoms as irrational and controllable outside the home, but vented on partner, close family and children. There was acknowledgement of difference from ‘normal’ (‘low’) with an emphasis on the all‐encompassing nature of symptoms (‘high’).Conclusions.Women with high and low menstrual cycle symptoms viewed aspects of themselves and their relationships with others in both similar and different ways. A major issue for high symptom women was that they struggled to tolerate imperfections, both in their own performance or in their relationships with others, potentially emphasizing the role of cogn

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X304441

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Objectives.The aim was to examine the role of trait anxiety and diagnosis on depressive symptoms and fatigue in women with early stage breast cancer or benign breast problems.Design.A prospective follow‐up study was performed in order to find predictors of depressive symptoms and fatigue.Methods.From the 169 participating women, 81 patients had breast cancer and 88 benign breast problems. Questionnaires for depressive symptoms and fatigue were completed before diagnosis (T1) and 1 (T2), 3 (T3), and 6 (T4) months after diagnosis (benign patients) or surgical treatment (breast cancer patients). A trait anxiety questionnaire was only completed before diagnosis was known.Results.Trait anxiety, assessedbeforediagnosis, was the only significant predictor of depressive symptoms at T4, even when depressive symptoms at baseline was included in the analysis. Fatigue at T4 was predicted by fatigue at baseline and trait anxiety. Demographic characteristics, diagnosis (benign or breast cancer) and adjuvant treatment (chemotherapy, radiotherapy, hormone therapy) did not play a role. Patients with breast cancer or benign breast problems scoring high on trait anxiety, scored higher on depressive symptoms and fatigue than the other patients, at all time points.Conclusions.Trait anxiety plays a role in experiencing depressive symptoms and fatigue over tim

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X310200

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

Objectives.Attitudes may influence behaviour through both deliberative and automatic processes. To investigate the automatic influences of attitudes, this study explores the accessibility of modally salient beliefs about physical activity outcomes using response latency measures.Design.Response latencies for modally salient beliefs for physically activity outcomes were compared with latencies for non‐salient, hygiene outcomes. Possible relationships between self‐report and response latency was assessed between‐ and within‐subjects.Method.Regularly active participants (N=148) completed a computer‐based response latency task in which they indicated whether an outcome, for example more fit, was a likely or unlikely consequence of six different physical activities, for example go running. Self‐reports of the likelihood of these outcomes, their importance, intentions to participate in the physical activities and frequency of participation were obtained.Results.As expected, the physical activity outcomes were more accessible than control outcomes. In addition, the outcomestrong heartwas less accessible than the outcomesmore fitandhave fun. There was only weak evidence, however, of any relationship between self‐reports and the accessibility of the physical activity outcomes.Conclusion.Response latency data may represent a source of between‐subject variation that differs from self‐report. Discussion focuses on the possible origins of s

ISSN:1359-107X    

DOI:10.1348/135910708X327608

出版商:Blackwell Publishing Ltd    

年代:2009

数据来源: WILEY