Coping with psychosomatic symptoms: The buffering role of psychological flexibility and impact on quality of life.
Individual differences in avoidant coping were hypothesized to exacerbate quality of life impairment associated with somatization and illness anxiety symptoms; psychological flexibility was expected to moderate this impairment. Individuals from a random community sample ( N = 298; 182 females), who met screening criteria for somatization and illness anxiety, reported lower quality of life and psychological flexibility and greater avoidant coping compared to controls. Psychological flexibility significantly moderated the impact of somatization and illness anxiety on quality of life domains. Findings suggest that decreasing avoidant coping through therapy may be promising in mitigating the negative impact of these symptom categories.
['Leonidou|Chrysanthi|C|', 'Panayiotou|Georgia|G|', 'Bati|Aspasia|A|', 'Karekla|Maria|M|']
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological D000328:Adult D001008:Anxiety Disorders D003674:Defense Mechanisms D005260:Female D006801:Humans D006998:Hypochondriasis D007206:Individuality D008297:Male D008875:Middle Aged D011788:Quality of Life D012803:Sick Role D013001:Somatoform Disorders D055815:Young Adult
coping psychosomatic symptoms psychological flexibility experiential avoidance health anxiety