Coping Strategies And Health Locus Of Control In Women With Chronic Hypertension

The purpose of this descriptive correlational study was to determine the coping strategies most often used, their perceived effectiveness, and their correlation to health locus of control in women with chronic hypertension. The nonrandomized sample (N = 35) were women ages 35-65 years from a rural northeast Mississippi community. The subjects were primarily middle-aged, white, and of middle socioeconomic status. The theoretical framework for this study was Roy\u27s Adaptation Model. Data collection were accomplished with the Personal Information Checklist, the Jalowiec Coping Scale, and the Health Locus of Control Scale. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson product moment correlational analysis. Findings indicated that all coping strategies were used and perceived at varying levels, indicating coping strategies changed with stressor levels. Correlations emerged between coping strategies used and perceived effective and health locus of control. Conclusions were that coping strategies are multifaceted and impacted by both internal and external factors. Implications are indicated for further studies by replication with larger population, with other diseases, and implementation of a longitudinal study