DOI

https://doi.org/10.25772/M1GA-5V47

Defense Date

2017

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Paul Perrin

Second Advisor

Scott McDonald

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine potential predictors of PTG across time in Veterans with acquired physical disabilities. Specifically, this study aimed to understand how various demographic and injury characteristics, coping styles, appraisals of injury, and social support might predict trajectories of PTG from discharge from inpatient rehabilitation through 12 months after baseline. Initial curvature analyses suggested that a cubic polynomial trend best fit the movement of PTG over time, generally conforming to an initial increase, decrease, and then plateau or slight increase. Four HLMs were run to examine whether demographic and injury characteristics, coping styles, appraisals of injury, and social support predicted the height of this cubic architecture of PTG across baseline, 1, 3, 6, and 12-month follow ups, and a final HLM examined whether any statistically significant fixed effects in the first four HLMs interacted with time in the prediction of participants’ PTG trajectories. Estimated premorbid IQ was negatively associated, while age was positively associated with the height of PTG over time. Reframing and religious coping were positively associated with PTG over time, as were challenge appraisals. Three types of social support did not independently predict PTG trajectories, although bivariate correlations suggested the presence of isolated relationships between different types of social support and PTG at certain time points. None of the significant predictors interacted with time in predicting participants’ PTG trajectories.

Rights

© The Author

Is Part Of

VCU University Archives

Is Part Of

VCU Theses and Dissertations

Date of Submission

8-13-2018

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