THE EFFECT OF THE ARTHRITIS SELF-HELP COURSE ON ARTHRITIS SELF-EFFICACY, PERCEIVED SOCIAL SUPPORT, PURPOSE AND MEANING IN LIFE, AND ARTHRITIS IMPACT IN PEOPLE WITH ARTHRITIS.
Contributors: University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Published: 1991
Number of pages: 158
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.; Psychology, General.
Description: Self-help education has become an important part of the support for individuals living with the consequences of arthritis. Because of the success of the Arthritis Foundation endorsed Arthritis Self-Help Course (ASHC), there is a need for continued investigation of this course related to physiologic and psychological adaptation in arthritis. The Roy Adaptation Model of Nursing and Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory were used as a framework to investigate the effect of the ASHC on variables associated with adaptation in arthritis.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of the ASHC on arthritis self-efficacy, perceived social support, purpose and meaning in life, and arthritis impact in people with arthritis. Subjects were 130 people, ages 27 to 87 years with arthritis. They were recruited from a multipurpose arthritis center, a non-profit organization providing services to elders, and the community in a large southeastern city and randomly assigned to an experimental or control group.

Four instruments were administered: the three subscales of the Arthritis Self-Efficacy Scale, the Personal Resource Questionnaire, the Purpose in Life Test, and the Arthritis Impact Measurement Scales. The experimental group received the Arthritis Help-book and participated in the ASHC, emphasizing self-management through experiential activities. Control group subjects received a brochure on self-management and were offered the opportunity to take the course after the study period.

MANCOVA and ANCOVA were used to test the difference in the posttest scores of the two groups with the pretest as the covariate. ASHC participants achieved significant increase in arthritis self-efficacy for pain management (p $<$.05) and other symptoms (p $<$.05). Arthritis self-efficacy for function, perceived social support, purpose and meaning in life, and arthritis impact scores were not affected by participation or non-participation in the course. This study demonstrated the effectiveness of the ASHC as a self-management strategy using experiential activity in ameliorating some of the consequences in adapting to arthritis.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 52-06, Section: B, page: 2995.

Thesis (D.S.N.)--UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM, 1991.

School code: 0005.