19 research outputs found
A study of a couple with type 2 diabetes: dyadic adjustment and psychological morbidity
Objective: this study assessed dyadic adjustment and psychological morbidity
in type 2 diabetic patients and their partners, focusing on the role of gender.
Methods: 214 diabetic patients and their partners participated in the cross-sectional
study and were assessed on psychological morbidity (HADS) and marital
adjustment (RDAS). Data was analyzed using dyadic analysis, a statistical process
that studies the patient/partner dyads simultaneously.
Results: results revealed that the negative relationship between dyadic adjustment
and psychological morbidity in female patients was stronger than in male
diabetic patients or in partners of male diabetic patients. On the other hand, the
relationship between dyadic adjustment and psychological morbidity in partners
of diabetic men was stronger than the same relationship in partners of diabetic
women.
Conclusion: since gender is a moderator, it is important to attend to the different
needs of female and male patients and the education of diabetic patients
should be centered on the patient/partner dyad.Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT
Dyadic coping among couples with COPD: a pilot study
COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) is associated with psychological distress for patients as well as their partners. Dyadic coping can be negatively impacted by stressors. This study's objective was to compare the dyadic coping of couples in which one partner suffered from COPD with healthy couples of the same age. A total of 43 complete couples with COPD and 138 healthy couples participated in this pilot study. The surveys were sent by mail. The response rate of the COPD sample was 24.3%. In order to analyze the effect of gender and role (patient vs. partner) on dyadic coping, linear mixed models were calculated. To analyze the effect of gender and group (COPD group vs. normative comparison group) on dyadic coping, two-way analyses of variance were calculated for independent samples. COPD patients and their partners indicated that the patients received more support and were less able to provide support to their partners. This difference was also evident in comparison with the normative comparison group. In addition, couples with COPD perceived higher levels of negative coping and provided a considerably lower assessment of their positive dyadic coping. The dyadic coping of couples with COPD is unbalanced and more negative when compared to that of healthy couples. Interventions aimed at supporting COPD couples should seek to improve couples' dyadic coping in addition to individual coping strategies