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Abstract
Objectives: A substantial minority of women report considerable distress during hot flushes.
Coping with various chronic health problems has been related to perceived control
in previous studies. Hence this study developed a standardised measure to investigate
whether perceived control is associated with less distress during menopausal hot flushes.
Method: The study presented a suitably re-worded 15-item scale (the Arthritis Helplessness
Index, originally developed by Nicassio et al., J Rheumatol 1985;12:462–467. Scoring
was reversed so that high scores signified greater perceived control. A volunteer
sample of 43 women (mean age 51 years) completed the scale together with several further
measures. A total of 35 women returned 12 month follow-up questionnaires. Results: The Perceived Control Index (PCI) scores correlated with standardised measures of
self-esteem and simple self-ratings (0–100) of perceived control, and remained very
stable over 12 months. Self-rated distress during flush episodes was more closely
related to perceived control than to more objective factors such as flush frequency
and chronicity. Conclusion: These findings support further investigation into whether subjective coping with
flushes may be improved by psychological interventions that enhance perceived control
and self-esteem.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
May 15,
1997
Received:
October 17,
1996
Identification
Copyright
© 1997 Published by Elsevier Inc.
