title: Coping strategies and quality of life in schizophrenia: cross-sectional study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The modern psychiatric view of schizophrenia spectrum disorders and their treatment has led to an increasing focus on coping strategies and the quality of life of these patients. In the present study, the authors examined the relationship between demographic data, the severity of symptoms, coping strategies, and the quality of life in psychotic patients. It is important to study the inner experience and striving of these individuals as it has been linked to their well-being and treatment adherence.
  
  
  METHODS
  Psychiatric outpatients who met International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision criteria for a psychotic disorder (schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or delusional disorder) were recruited in the study. Questionnaires measuring the coping strategies (The Stress Coping Style Questionnaire [SVF-78]), the quality of life (Quality of Life Satisfaction and Enjoyment Questionnaire [Q-LES-Q]), and symptom severity (objective and subjective Clinical Global Impression - objCGI; subjCGI) were assessed. The data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance, Mann-Whitney U test, Pearson and Spearman correlation coefficients, and multiple regression analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 109 psychotic patients were included in the study. The quality of life was significantly related to both the positive and negative coping strategies. The severity of disorder was highly negatively correlated with the quality of life score. The results of multiple stepwise regression analysis using the quality of life as a dependent variable showed that symptom severity (subjCGI, difference between subjCGI, and objCGI), negative coping strategies, positive coping strategies, and the difference between positive and negative coping strategies explain more than half variance.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our study suggests the importance of utilizing the positive coping strategies in improving the quality of life in patients with psychotic disorders.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University, Olomouc, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Michaela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Holubova
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University, Olomouc, Czech Republic ; Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Olomouc, Czech Ministry of Health, Olomouc, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Prasko
authors.affiliation: Psychiatric Outpatient Department, Martin, Slovak Republic.
authors.forename: Radovan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hruby
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University, Olomouc, Czech Republic ; Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Olomouc, Czech Ministry of Health, Olomouc, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Dana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kamaradova
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University, Olomouc, Czech Republic ; Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Olomouc, Czech Ministry of Health, Olomouc, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Marie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ociskova
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University, Olomouc, Czech Republic ; Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Olomouc, Czech Ministry of Health, Olomouc, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Klara
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Latalova
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Palacký University, Olomouc, Czech Republic ; Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Olomouc, Czech Ministry of Health, Olomouc, Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Ales
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Grambal
keywords: coping strategies; psychotic disorders; quality of life; schizophrenia; severity of the disorder