Theses and Dissertations

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Browsing Theses and Dissertations by Subject "Adjustment (Psychology)"

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    Attachment Orientation, Affect Regulation, and Coping Styles in Young Adults with Persistent, Transient, or Absent History of Deliberate Self-Harm
    (Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, University of Regina, 2012-06) Gelinas, Bethany Lee; Wright, Kristi D.; Hart-Mitchell, Regan D.; Sharpe, Donald; Genoe, Rebecca
    The prevalence of deliberate self-harm (DSH) is on the rise, making clinicians more likely than ever to encounter DSH in their clinical practice (Klonsky, 2007; Nock, 2009), and consequently making research that informs such clinical practice increasingly vital. Past research has neglected to adequately explore the differences between absent, persistent, and transient DSH histories and the factors related to increased DSH frequency. Attachment orientation, coping styles, and affect regulation have been implicated as important to adjustment and psychopathology; however, the role of these constructs in DSH and specifically whether they can be successfully applied to explain the differences between DSH histories has yet to be explored. The purposes of this study were fourfold: (1) investigate the relationship between attachment orientation and likelihood of persistent, transient, or absent DSH; (2) determine whether motivations for engaging in self-harm, coping styles and affect regulation differ according to the individuals’ type of self-harm history; (3) investigate which constructs (attachment orientation, coping styles, affect regulation, or motivations) were most predictive of a particular self-harm history; and (4) develop a better understanding of the offset of DSH behaviour and how individuals managed to cease this behaviour. A battery of questionnaires was administered via an online survey to 139 university students in order to gain a better understanding of the relationship between these constructs and DSH history and frequency. The relative importance and predictive utility of these constructs, the differences between DSH histories, and the information obtained on DSH cessation could contribute to more successful treatment and more efficacious prevention. Findings are discussed in terms of clinical and scientific implications.
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    Emotional Adjustment to Multiple Sclerosis: Evaluation of a Stress and Coping Model and a Cognitive Adaptation Model
    (Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research, University of Regina, 2013-06) Kehler, Melissa Deirdre; Hadjistavropoulos, Heather; Asmundson, Gordon; Sharpe, Donald; Salm, Twyla; Hart, Stacey
    Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is an unpredictable health condition that affects physical, cognitive, and emotional aspects of life (Compston & Coles, 2008). Emotional adjustment to MS is often studied by examining psychopathology rather than positive adjustment outcomes. Lacking in the literature on adjustment to MS is attention to integrated and parsimonious models of both negative and positive aspects of emotional adjustment. The purpose of this study was to examine, compare, and integrate two models of emotional adjustment to MS, with adjustment conceptualized as including both negative outcomes (i.e., anxiety, depression, negative affect) and positive outcomes (i.e., positive affect and quality of life). Individuals with MS (N = 431) completed questionnaires online to assess the components of Lazarus and Folkman’s (1984) stress and coping model, and a model of Taylor’s (1983) theory of cognitive adaptation, along with multiple outcome measures. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to refine the variables for inclusion in the models. Structural equation modelling was used to test the models. The stress and coping model explained a large proportion of variance (98.4%) in negative adjustment outcomes, but was unable to be used to test positive adjustment outcomes. Primary appraisals and escape-avoidance coping were associated with greater negative adjustment, whereas cognitive restructuring and problem solving coping and emotional and social coping were weak contributors to explaining adjustment. The cognitive adaptation model explained a large proportion of variance in both positive (81.9%) and negative adjustment (97.3%). Benefit finding was a weak contributor to positive adjustment but not negative adjustment. The remaining cognitive adaptation variables (i.e., optimism, self-esteem, and mastery) each contributed to the prediction of adjustment outcomes. Model comparison revealed that the cognitive adaptation model provided a better fit for examining adjustment outcomes. The stress and coping model was unsuccessfully integrated with dispositional optimism and the remaining cognitive adaptation components. Multicollinearity of latent variables and suppression in mediation were evidenced in both of the adjustment models. The results contribute to the theoretical study of multiple conceptualizations of emotional adjustment to MS and provide a rare comparison of two adjustment models. This study also leads to valuable information for clinicians.