| The aim of this research was to interrelate adaptiveness in coping with adjustment to spinal cord injury, perceived stress, and quality of life. This was done by testing a total of 86 persons with traumatic spinal cord injury using the Reactions to Impairment and Disability Inventory (RIDI Livneh & Antonak, 1991), the Personal Functioning Inventory (PFI Kohn, O'Brien-Wood, Pickering, & De Cicco, 2003), the Cantril Ladder (Cantril, 1965) and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS Cohen, Kamarck, & Mermelstein, 1983). The design of the study was longitudinal in that the same participants were tested twice over a three month period.Statistical analyses revealed two sets of affect: positive and negative. Denial did not fall into either of these groupings. The PFI emerged as a significant predictor of stress. Older people, and people who had a lesser degree of disability, seemed to adapt better to a spinal cord injury. The limitations of recruitment and attrition, and future research directions are discussed.The following hypotheses were tested: 1) The order of stages of disability is as follows: a) early stages including shock, anxiety, and denial, b) mid-stages of depression, internalized anger, and externalized hostility, and c) later stages of acknowledgement, and adjustment, 2) persons who are more adaptive will be more advanced in stages of adjustment to disability than persons who are less adaptive, and 3) persons who are more adaptive will have a greater quality of life and less perceived stress than persons who are less adaptive. |
