Spouse Encouragement of self-reliance and other-reliance in rheumatoid arthritis couples

Abstract

Studying and helping couples burdened with a major life stressor such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA) can be enhanced by employing well-understood conceptual and empirical frameworks, in our research person/environment fit (P x E) models. We measured P x E effects in a sample of 62 rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients with locus of control beliefs, age, and the health status of the subjects as the Person variables and their spouses' control encouragement as the Environment variable. As predicted, externals were most sensitive to their spouses' behavior. Health status and age moderated the effects of the subjects' control beliefs and spouses' control efforts. Control encouragement showed positive benefits, but only for the younger and healthier subjects; it was related to increased psychological distress for externals in poorer health. Although many models of therapy suggest the benefits of increasing personal control, these data suggest the necessity of employing a more complex model integrating both person and social environment variables in understanding mental health.

Resource loss, self-efficacy, and family support predict posttraumatic stress symptoms: a 3-year study of earthquake survivors

“…This result confirmed the Anxiety, Stress, & Coping 249 compensation hypothesis postulating that deficits in self-efficacy can be compensated by social support, which has been found in previous research on resource loss due to aging (Lachman et al, 1994;Warner et al, 2011) or diseases (Aymanns, 1992;Reich & Zautra, 1995). However, as opposed to previous studies that found higher social support to be detrimental to health outcomes if combined with higher self-efficacy (interference hypothesis; Warner et al, 2011), no such effect emerged in this sample of earthquake survivors.…”

“…A study on older adults with multiple chronic conditions found that this specific sample was able to maintain its sense of autonomy despite lower levels of selfefficacy if they received higher social support (Warner et al, 2011). Accordingly, individuals reporting lower self-efficacy and higher support were found to adjust more easily to health problems such as cancer (Aymanns, 1992) or rheumatoid arthritis (Reich & Zautra, 1995). Hence, even though higher self-efficacy beliefs are generally associated with more adaptive coping, the social support system can help out if self-efficacy is depleted.…”

Marital Quality and Self-Efficacy: Influence on Disease Management among Individuals with Rheumatoid Arthritis

“…Spousal encouragement and emotional support also predict better psychological adjustment and adaptation to the disease (Reich & Zautra, 1995).…”

Caregiving appraisal and disease activity in early inflammatory arthritis

“…Much of the research that has examined psychosocial adjustment in the arthritis population has involved patients with longstanding disease (2–4, 10, 19–21, 23, 27–32). Few investigations have focused on psychosocial factors present during the first 5 years of diagnosis (1, 22, 25, 26).…”