COPING WITH CARDIAC SURGERY (APPRAISAL, STRATEGIES, CONCERNS).
Contributors: University of Rochester.
Published: 1984
Number of pages: 240
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: The purpose of this study was to examine how people cope with the experience of cardiac surgery. The two principle concerns of the research were to (1) describe the process of coping over time and (2) examine the relationships among the various elements involved in coping with this experience.

Fifty patients scheduled for coronary artery bypass grafting were interviewed before and after surgery. Data were collected on appraisals of challenge and threat, coping strategies utilized, current concerns, emotional state, locus of causality, and functional outcome.

The results indicated that: (1) the event was appraised as more of a challenge than a threat and that these appraisals did not change over time; (2) with the exception of attention deployment-avoidance, all coping strategies were used by the majority of subjects both prior to and after surgery; (3) the use and perceived helpfulness of information seeking and attention deployment-avoidance were highest before surgery and decreased significantly after; (4) the use and perceived helpfulness of turning to others, direct action, and imagery-rehearsal-vigilance were lowest before surgery and increased significantly after; (5) the use of positive thinking and search for meaning did not change over time; (6) the current concerns involving threats to bodily integrity and life decreased significantly from before to after surgey, while threats to fulfilling customary social roles and threats to future plans did not change over time; (7) the mood states fatigue, tension, and confusion increased from before to three days after surgery and then decreased thereafter, while the mood states anger and depression did not change over time and had the lowest scores reported at every point of measurement; (8) the concern involving fulfillment of customary social roles was correlated with the coping strategy turning to others, concern for life was correlated with attention deployment-avoidance, and concern over furture plans was correlated with imagery-rehearsal-vigilance; (9) no relationship was found between emotional states and concerns, (10) emotional distress was positively correlated with attention deployment- avoidance and negatively correlated with information seeking; (11) different patterns of coping strategies and causality orientations were related to appraisals of challenge versus threat; and (12) the functional and emotional outcomes of coping were independent.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 45-11, Section: B, page: 3468.

Thesis (PH.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER, 1984.

School code: 0188.