The purpose of the present investigation was to test a theoretical model of adjustment to the uncertainties of epilepsy, particularly early symptom interpretation and the unpredictability of future seizure occurrences following diagnosis. A sample of 27 epileptic subjects, 14 females and 13 males, who developed seizures during adolescence, completed an extensive interview, comprised of rating scale questions, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and open-ended questions. / Seven hypotheses derived from the theoretical framework were tested in this study: (1) the ambiguity of the subjects' initial seizures was positively associated, r (24) = .41, p = .04, with the extent of delay in seeking medical attention following onset; (2) the amount of information subjects had about epilepsy was positively correlated with their level of involvement in managing the seizure disorder, r (25) = .51, p = .007, and their perceptions of control over the condition, r (25) = .35, p = .07), during early adjustment (i.e., one year following diagnosis); (3) seizure frequency was negatively correlated with the subjects' perceptions of control over epilepsy during early, r (23) = -.41, p = .01, and current (i.e., 6 months prior to the interview) adjustment, r (22) = -.67, p = .001; (4) the participants' involvement in self-treatment was predicted to be negatively associated with seizure frequency during early and current adjustment. Contrary to expectations, a positive relationship was found between these variables, r (23) = .24, p = .24 and r (22) = .35, p = .10, respectively; (5) the subjects' perceptions of control over the condition were positively correlated with involvement in self treatment during early adjustment, r (25) = .34, p = .08, but not during current adjustment, r (24) = -.15, p = .45; (6) the subjects' perceptions of control over future seizures was negatively associated with their level of depressive affect, r (23) = -.36, p = .08; (7) subjects who attributed their initial seizures to lifestyle problems tended to perform actions to resolve these difficulties (p < .10). / Finally, the findings of the present study were interpreted with respect to the theoretical framework, emphasizing the health-related actions and strategies taken by epileptic persons to reduce the uncertainties associated with the condition. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 42-06, Section: B, page: 2527. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1981.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_74545 |
| Contributors | GLUECKAUF, ROBERT LEWIS., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 97 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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