Psychological Aspects of Rheumatoid Arthritis (Recent Research in Psychology)

The main research described in this book is concerned with assessing the interrelationship of psychological adjustment, compliance with medical advice and use of unorthodox treatments in a sample of rheumatoid arthritic out-patients. Basically this research is comprised of four components: two pilot studies; the development and postal administration of an illness knowledge assessment questionnaire; and a 'follow-up' correlational study. pilot study 1, which involved interviews with 18 patients, was a 'question seeking' study - the aim being to develop research questions of relevance to the Subject sample. The findings of this study suggested that poor illness knowledge and consequent misconceptions was contributing to psychological distress and affecting health behaviour among patients. In pilot study 2 a sample of 17 patients were questioned in detail - but using open-ended questions - about their understanding of their condition and treatment. The results of this study supported the impression gained in pilot study 1, that patients were typically ill-informed about their illness and tended, in the absence of correct information, to overestimate "the risks associated with rheumatoid arthritis and underestimate the value of treatments. Front Matter....Pages i-xv Introduction....Pages 1-6 Psychological Distress in Rheumatoid Arthritis....Pages 7-32 Compliance with Medical Advice....Pages 33-53 Unorthodox Treatment Use....Pages 54-75 Pilot Study 1 — An Exploration of Psychological Issues in Rheumatoid Arthritis....Pages 76-85 Patients’ Knowledge and Misconceptions about their Illness....Pages 86-115 Methodology of the Main Correlational Study....Pages 116-130 Psychological Distress — Results and Discussion....Pages 131-141 Compliance with Conventional Medical Treatment — Results and Discussion....Pages 142-152 Use of Unorthodox Treatments — Results and Discussion....Pages 153-171 Conclusions....Pages 172-178 Back Matter....Pages 179-208 Mary L. Pritchard. Includes Bibliographical References (p. [179]-208).