Emotion-related primary and secondary appraisals, adjustment and coping: associations in women awaiting breast disease diagnosis.
OBJECTIVE
Different emotions are to some extent associated with different ways of coping. Cognitive processes involved in determining emotional reactions may influence coping (perhaps through directing attention or generating salient information). This study explored possible appraisal-coping associations by examining whether a set of appraisal components identified in emotion theory were also associated with coping.


METHODS
The study examined concurrent associations between appraisal components, emotional adjustment, and coping in 148 women with suspected breast disease.


METHODS
Questionnaire measures of primary and secondary appraisal components identified in emotion theory, anxiety, depression, and coping were sent to women during the waiting period between GP referral and attendance at a 'one-stop' breast-disease diagnosis clinic.


RESULTS
Consistent with expectations, appraisal components were associated with both emotions and coping. Elevated anxiety was associated with appraisals of low emotion-focused coping potential; avoidance coping was associated with motivational incongruence, self-accountability, and pessimistic appraisal of emotion-focused coping potential; acceptance/resignation coping was associated with self-accountability and pessimistic appraisals of both future expectancy and emotion-focused coping potential.


CONCLUSIONS
This study presents a theoretically driven approach to exploring associations between emotions and adjustment efforts. In keeping with expectations, a number of appraisal components identified in emotion theory were found to be associated with both emotion and coping.
Lowe
Rob
R
Department of Psychology, University of Wales Swansea, Swansea, UK.
Vedhara
Kav
K
Bennett
Paul
P
Brookes
Emily
E
Gale
Lone
L
Munnoch
Kathy
K
Schreiber-Kounine
Christa
C
Fowler
Clare
C
Rayter
Zen
Z
Sammon
Alistair
A
Farndon
John
J
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001007:Anxiety / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology; D001941:Breast Diseases / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012044:Regression Analysis; D006113:United Kingdom