A meta-analytic review of coping with illness - Do causal attributions matter?

Objective: The present meta-analytic review assessed the relations between causal attributions, coping, and psychological adjustment in individuals wi th physical illnesses or undergoing medical procedures. A theoretical model predicting psychological adjustment was proposed. It was hypothesized that causal attributions would be both directly related to psychological adjust ment and indirectly related to psychology adjustment via coping strategies. Methods: Relevant methodological and statistical information was extracted from 27 target studies. Weighted correlations from 27 studies were used as the unit of analysis to test the theoretical model. Results: Overall, inte rnal, unstable, and controllable attributions were indirectly associated wi th positive psychological adjustment through the use of Approach and Emotio n-Focused coping (P < .01). In addition, stable and uncontrollable attribut ions were indirectly associated with negative psychological adjustment thro ugh the use of Avoidance coping (P < .01). Conclusion: These results sugges t that attributions guide some motivated cognitions and behaviors within th e context of illness, and are related to specific coping strategies. The di scussion focuses on the predictive validity of these findings using the pro posed theoretical model. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved .