title: Using the common sense model of self-regulation to understand the relationship between symptom reporting and trait negative affect.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Based on the Common Sense Model of Self-Regulation, we examined if the relationship of trait NA to physical symptom reporting was moderated by life events and illness representations.
  
  
  METHODS
  This relationship was examined using a cross-sectional dataset of 554 elderly adults.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A significant three-way interaction demonstrated that individuals who reported the greatest severity of physical symptoms were higher in trait NA, and reported more life events and a chronic illness history.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of this study are consistent with the hypothesis that individual high on trait NA who have a history of a chronic illness have illness representations with both disease specific physical symptoms and symptoms from other causes, such as emotional distress. This may complicate the care of medical conditions for these patients.
authors.affiliation: War Related Illness and Injury Study Center, Department of Veterans Affairs, 385 Tremont Ave #129, East Orange, NJ, 07018, USA, lisa.mcandrew@va.gov.
authors.forename: Lisa M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: McAndrew
authors.forename: Pablo A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Mora
authors.forename: Karen S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Quigley
authors.forename: Elaine A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Leventhal
authors.forename: Howard
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Leventhal
mesh_terms: D000339:Affect / Q000502:physiology*; D000368:Aged; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008960:Models, Psychological; D012720:Severity of Illness Index