It is theorized that persons with strong sense of coherence are likely
to define an event as less stressful and be able to manage a problem
more successfully than those with weak sense of coherence. The study i
nvestigated the relationship among coherence and personal and environm
ental concerns, appraisal of threat, emotional distress, and high-risk
behaviors in minority women at risk for human immunodeficiency (HIV)
infection. As predicted, a significant negative relationship was seen
between level of coherence and concerns. Moreover, women strong in coh
erence reported less negative appraisals of threat, less emotional dis
tress, and fewer high-risk behaviors than those with weak coherence. R
esults of tests of a path model investigating the impact of coherence
and appraisal on distress and risk revealed coherence to be significan
tly and negatively associated with appraisal, distress, and risk, both
directly and indirectly through its association with appraisal. The p
ath model accounted for 45% of the variance in distress, 10% of the va
riance in appraisal, and 4% of risk behavior. Continuing investigation
of factors such as coherence that can lessen the seriousness of envir
onmental stressors is imperative as it relates to women at risk for HI
V infection.