title: Coping with health problems in old age. A longitudinal approach.
abstract: An analysis of medical, psychological, and social data of the Bonn Longitudinal Study on Aging, comparing a subgroup of the BOLSA sample, which developed different forms of chronic disease four to six years after the beginning of the study, and a healthy subsample, points to different patterns of coping in these two subgroups. The sequence of these response patterns provides some evidence for a special form of psychosocial competence of chronically ill aged persons, which developed in an 'accelerated' way in the ill group, and in a retarded way in the initially healthy group. The findings emphasize the need for continuing research into the psychosocial aspects of coping with chronic disease in old age.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Gerontology, University of Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Lehr
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kruse
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000368:Aged / Q000523:psychology*; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D010553:Personality Development