Perceived discrimination and emotional distress among family caregivers of children with physical disabilities: The mediational role of affiliate stigma and self-efficacy.

The main objective of this research is to examine the consequences of perceived discrimination in family caregivers of people with physical disabilities. Through path analysis, we test the association between caregivers' perceived discrimination and their anxiety and depression and the mediating role that affiliate stigma and self-efficacy may play. We proposed a model that has not been tested previously in the literature on caregivers of people with physical disabilities. The sample includes 186 Spanish fathers (35%) or mothers (65%) raising children with physical disabilities. Descriptive statistics and Pearson's correlation coefficients were calculated and structural equation modeling was used to examine the mediating effect. Results show that caregivers' perceived discrimination is positively associated with their affiliate or internalized stigma that in turn is harmful to their anxiety and depression. However, caregivers' self-efficacy plays a mediating role in the relation between affiliate stigma and caregivers' anxiety and depression. These results may be useful for designing interventions to improve the psychological well-being of the parents of children with physical disabilities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Psychological Quality of Life in People with Physical Disability: The Effect of Internalized Stigma, Collective Action and Resilience.

PURPOSE: The main objective of this study was to examine the role of social identification, collective action and resilience in reducing the negative consequences of internalized stigma on the psychological quality of life of people with physical disability using path analysis. We propose a model with two paths: the first through social identification and collective action and the second via resilience. METHOD: A total of 288 Spanish people with physical disability aged between 18 and 82 years (46.4% males; mean [SD] of age = 45.1 [12.3] responded to the questionnaire. Data were collected for three months through an online survey. RESULTS: The tested model adequately fit the data. We found that the relationship between internalized stigma and the psychological quality of life of people with physical disability was mediated by resilience. However, neither social identification nor collective action mediated the association between internalized stigma and quality of life among our participants. CONCLUSIONS: The results confirmed the negative association between internalized stigma and quality of life in the population with physical disability. The results show that some interactive processes, such as resilience, may contribute to decreasing the negative effects of internalized stigma. In contrast, no effects of identification with the group or collective action intention were found.

How to cope with disabilities: Development and psychometric properties of the Coping With Disability Difficulties Scale (CDDS).

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to develop and test the psychometric properties of the Coping With Disability Difficulties Scale (CDDS), a scale to measure the coping strategies used by people with disabilities to face the disability-related difficulties (caused by both disability itself and by stigma) they encounter in their daily lives. METHOD/DESIGN: An initial pool of 110 items was developed based on previous literature and the results of a qualitative study using semistructured interviews. The psychometric characteristics of the CDDS were examined in 3 samples of people with disabilities (each of which included participants with physical, visual, and hearing impairments; total N = 590). RESULTS: A final scale of 17 items was obtained. The factor structure of the CDDS was tested and replicated with an adequate fit (root mean square error of approximation [RMSEA] = 0.056; goodness-of-fit index [GFI] = 0.98; comparative fit index [CFI] = 0.98) using confirmatory factor analysis. The internal consistency of the 4 factors (positive thinking, social sensitization and support, adaptation, and avoidance) was adequate to excellent (with alphas ranging from .68 to .86). CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS: To the authors' knowledge, this is the first coping scale that is specifically designed for people with disabilities, and it can be highly useful for both research and applied purposes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Subtle and blatant perceived discrimination and well-being in lesbians and gay men in Spain: The role of social support.

BACKGROUND: The situation of lesbians and gay men (LGs) in Spain has improved significantly in recent decades. However, Spanish society still exhibits prejudice and discrimination. The current study pursues three main goals: 1) to analyse the extent to which LGs perceive blatant and subtle discrimination, 2) to explore the relationship between perceived discrimination and LGs’ psychological and subjective well-being, and 3) to analyse the possible mediational role of social support in reducing the negative influence of perceived discrimination on well-being. METHOD: The sample comprised 237 lesbians and 232 gay men. RESULTS: The results show higher perceived subtle than blatant discrimination, and that subtle discrimination affects LGs’ well-being more negatively than blatant discrimination. Results show that social support helps to alleviate the negative effects of discrimination on well-being. CONCLUSIONS: These results are important and may contribute to the design of interventions to improve the well-being of lesbians and gay men.

La relación entre la discriminación percibida y el balance afectivo en personas con discapacidad física: el papel mediador del dominio del entorno / The relationship between perceived discrimination and affective balance on people with physical disabilities: the mediating role of environmental mastery / A relação entre a discriminação percebida e o balanço afetivo em pessoas com deficiência física: o papel mediador do dominio do ambiente

Numerosas investigaciones ponen de manifiesto que la discriminación percibida tiene un efecto negativo importante en la salud física y mental de las personas pertenecientes a diversos grupos estigmatizados. El objetivo del presente estudio es investigar la relación entre la discriminación percibida y el balance entre emociones positivas y negativas en personas con discapacidad física. Asimismo, se analiza el papel mediador de una variable especialmente relevante en relación con las personas con discapacidad física, el dominio del entorno (Ryff, 1989a), como factor protector de la influencia negativa de la discriminación. En el estudio participaron 52 personas con discapacidad física. Los resultados mostraron que la relación negativa entre la discriminación percibida y el balance afectivo se reduce significativamente al introducir el dominio del entorno en la ecuación. Asimismo, se encontró que la edad de los participantes está positivamente relacionada, tanto con el balance afectivo, como con el dominio del entorno. Esta investigación demuestra que en la medida en que las personas con discapacidad física se sienten con la habilidad personal de elegir o crear entornos favorables, los efectos negativos del estigma disminuyen.

There is a large body of research showing that perceived discrimination has a negative effect on physical and mental health of persons belonging to different stigmatized groups. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between perceived discrimination and affective balance in people with physical disabilities. In addition, the mediating role of a special relevant variable -the environmental mastery (Ryff, 1989a) - is analyzed in relation to people with physical disabilities as a protective factor against negative discrimination. Participants in the study were 52 people with physical disabilities. Results showed that the negative relationship between perceived discrimination and affective balance is significantly reduced by introducing environmental mastery into the equation. It was also found that the age of the participants shows a positive association both with affective balance and environmental mastery. This research shows that to the extent that people with physical disabilities feel able to choose or create favorable environments, the negative effects of stigma are reduced.

Numerosas pesquisas põem em evidência que a discriminação percebida tem um efeito negativo grande na saúde física e mental das pessoas pertencentes a diversos grupos estigmatizados. O objetivo do presente estudo é pesquisar a relação entre a discriminação percebida e o balanço entre emoções positivas e negativas em pessoas com deficiência física. Da mesma forma, analisa-se o papel mediador de uma variável especialmente relevante em relação com as pessoas com deficiência física, o domínio do ambiente (Ryff, 1989a), como fator protetor da influência negativa da discriminação. No estudo participaram 52 pessoas com deficiência física. Os resultados mostraram que a relação negativa entre a discriminação percebida e o balanço afetivo se reduz significativamente ao introduzir o domínio do ambiente na equação. Da mesma forma, encontrou-se que a idade dos participantes está positivamente relacionada, tanto com o balanço afetivo, como com o domínio do ambiente. Esta pesquisa demonstra que na medida em que as pessoas com deficiência física sentem-se com a habilidade pessoal de escolher ou criar ambientes favoráveis, os efeitos negativos do estigma diminuem.