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. 2017;36(4):791-800.
doi: 10.1007/s12144-016-9468-5. Epub 2016 Jun 27.

Social Functioning and Coping Strategies in Romanian and Moldavian Adolescents with Chronic Diseases

Andreea Mihaela Mihalca  1 , Loredana Ruxandra Diaconu-Gherasim  2 , Lacramioara Ionela Butnariu  3
Affiliations

Social Functioning and Coping Strategies in Romanian and Moldavian Adolescents with Chronic Diseases

Andreea Mihaela Mihalca et al. Curr Psychol. 2017.

Abstract

The present study aimed to explore the cultural differences in social functioning and coping strategies in chronically ill adolescents. One hundred sixty-eight chronically ill adolescents (45.8 % girls), age 11 to 17 years from Romania (N = 78) and Republic of Moldova (N = 90) were recruited. Participants filled in self-assessment measures for social functioning problems and coping strategies. Results indicated cross-cultural differences in the studied factors: Moldavian adolescents reported more social functioning problems and higher use of maladaptive coping strategies, while using less adaptive strategies than Romanian counterparts. The associations between social functioning and maladaptive coping strategies were stronger for Romanian than Moldavian adolescents. Further, various coping strategies acted as important predictors for social functioning in the two country samples. Findings suggest that, while the direction of the relation between coping and social functioning in chronically ill adolescents is cultural invariant, the importance played by specific coping strategies in determining social functioning varies by cultural context. Therefore, clinical interventions aimed at improving the social functioning of chronically ill adolescents should take into account the reality of their cultural setting.

Keywords: Adolescence; Chronic disease; Coping strategies; Cross-cultural comparison; Social functioning.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Institutions where the research was performed and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
The moderating role of culture in the relation between planning and social functioning
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
The moderating role of culture in the relation between catastrophizing and social functioning
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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