K. Grummon et al., PSYCHOSOCIAL VARIABLES THAT AFFECT THE PSYCHOLOGICAL ADJUSTMENT OF IVDU PATIENTS WITH AIDS, Journal of clinical psychology, 50(4), 1994, pp. 488-502
The influences of coping strategies and of perceived social support fr
om family and friends on the psychological adjustment of intravenous d
rug users (IVDUs) with Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) were
investigated. Twenty-seven male AIDS patients with a history of intrav
enous drug use completed a demographic questionnaire, Trails-B, the Wa
ys of Coping Questionnaire, Perceived Social Support from Family, Perc
eived Social Support from Friends, and the Mental Health Inventory. Un
expected results were obtained: The only coping strategy to correlate
significantly with psychological adjustment was ''Seeking Social Suppo
rt,'' and perceived social support from family correlated positively w
ith psychological adjustment, but perceived social support from friend
s did not. Interpretations and implications of these findings are pres
ented.