THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERCEIVED STRESS AND RESILIENCE AMONG ADOLESCENTS WITH CYSTIC FIBROSIS

Abstract

Despite a shortened lifespan, children with cystic fibrosis (CF) are living into early adulthood; however, most of their lifespan is spent in adolescence. Adolescence is a time of complex physical and psychosocial development, and a diagnosis of CF further magnifies these challenges. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between perceived stress and resilience among adolescents with CF. Identifying a relationship can increase awareness of the psychosocial needs of adolescents with CF and promote overall wellness. The research question was: What is the relationship between perceived stress and resilience among adolescents with cystic fibrosis? The theoretical framework used for this study was Lazarus and Folkman's (1984) Theory of Stress and Coping. Lazarus and Folkman's theory aims to explain how a person psychologically copes with stressful situations. According to this theory, one's perception of physical and mental health is related to the way one evaluates and copes with stressors. A non-experimental, correlational design was used for this study. A convenience sample of 19 adolescents with CF, ages 15 to 23 years, was obtained from a CF clinic located at a large hospital in the midwestern region of the United States. A 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PPS-10) and a 14-item Resilience Scale (RS-14) were used to measure perceived stress and resilience. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze data. Pearson's correlation (two-tailed) indicated that there was a statistically significant relationship between perceived stress and resilience (r = - .709, p < .05). The overall resilience mean was 5.2444 (SD = .97483) and the overall perceived stress mean score was 1.8368 (SD = .64568). In this study, the higher the resilience level among adolescents with CF, the lower the perceived stress. Implications for practice include being aware of the psychosocial needs of adolescents with cystic fibrosis. Although this study found an overall low level of perceived stress, and moderately low to moderate resilience, it is important to assess perceived stress levels and resilience among adolescents to provide holistic care and improve overall quality of life. Future research is needed with a large sample size.