DEVELOPMENT AND TESTING OF A CONTEXTUALLY AND CULTURALLY RELEVANT MEASURE OF COPING FOR USE WITH WOMEN INFECTED WITH HIV

In this article, we describe the development and initial testing of a contextually and culturally relevant measure of coping. The instrument was developed and tested during several stages of a longitudinal stud y of 264 women with HIV infection carried out in rural and urban areas of a southeastern state. During the development phase, qualitative de scriptions of how the participants were coping with HIV disease were c ollected in the first of five interviews conducted over a year. A fift y-four-item measure of coping was developed with individual items word ed to reflect the descriptions provided by participants. The measure w as submitted to testing during two of the final interviews with the pa rticipants. The results of psychometric testing revealed five valid an d reliable coping subscales: avoidance, managing the illness, spiritua lity, seeking social support, and focusing on others. The results of p sychometric assessment of the measure are reported and differences in coping strategies used based on socioeconomic factors are examined.