Author: Komal Amir
Supervisor: Ms. Humaira Naz
Degree: BS
Year: 2013-2017
University: Centre for Clinical Psychology, Punjab University, Lahore, Pakistan
Abstract
The study was conducted to investigate the relationship between
Illness Perception, Appearance Anxiety and Quality of Life in
patients with Dermatological Conditions. Further aim was to
assess the predictive relationship between illness perception,
appearance anxiety and quality of life in patients with
dermatological conditions. It was hypothesized that appearance
anxiety would likely to mediate between illness perception and
quality of life. Data was collected form 100 diagnosed patients
comprising: patients with acne=50, eczema=30 and psoriasis=20
within age (M=24.51, SD= 5.34) including men (n = 21) and
women (n=79) from government hospitals and private clinics.
The instruments included Illness Perception Questionnaire Revised (IPQ-R; Morris, Petrie & Weinmen, 2002), Appearance Anxiety Inventory (Veale, 2104) and WHO Quality of Life
(WHOQOL-BREF; WHOQOL Group, 1996). The correlation
analysis revealed a significant negative relation of negative illness
perception (illness coherence) and appearance anxiety with
domains of quality of life. However, positive illness perception
(personal control, timeline cyclical and emotional representation)
had a significant positive relation with all domains of quality of
life. Mediation analysis depicted indirect effect of appearance
anxiety in predicting relationship between illness perception
(illness coherence and emotional representation) and all domains
of quality of life. The independent sample t-test revealed that
significant differences were found on appearance anxiety. Women
were more concerned about their appearance and men were more
satisfied about their social and environmental quality of life. It is
inferred that illness perception along with appearance anxiety
effect overall quality of life determining positive and negative
views of illness.
Keywords: Illness Perception, Appearance Anxiety, .Quality of Life, Dermatological Conditions.
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