“…Family members, however, can differ in the specific ways they represent the illness (e.g., chronicity, consequences, control) and such differences hold important implications for adjustment (Leventhal, Brissete, & Leventhal, 2002;Weinman, Heijmans, & Figueiras, 2002). Dyadic dissimilarity in illness representations and relations to patient adjustment has only recently been examined with mixed results (Figueiras & Weinman, 2003;Heijmans, de Ridder, & Bensing, 1999;Law, 2002). Small sample sizes, the study of different illnesses, different patientcaregiver dyads (e.g., husband-wife vs. parent-child), and variability in conceptualizations of dissimilarity have hampered our understanding of the relation between dyad dissimilarity and adjustment.…”