Predictors of anxiety and depression among newly diagnosed people living with HIV

A longitudinal study

Bibliographic Data

ID21391771
AuthorsHelena Garrido-Hernansaiz (0000-0001-8715-0842, Department of Education and Psychology Centro Universitario Cardenal Cisneros Universidad de Alcalá Madrid Spain, corresponding author), Jesús Alonso‐Tapia (0000-0001-6544-0224, Department of Biological and Health Psychology Universidad Autónoma de Madrid Madrid Spain)
Year2020
Volume61
Issue5
Pages616-624
Publication date2020-10-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueScandinavian Journal of Psychology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0036-5564 • E-ISSN: 1467-9450
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/sjop.12621
PMID31999836
OpenAlexW3004115135
LanguageEN
Citations received10
References cited64

This longitudinal study examined whether past resilience and internalized stigma predicted anxiety and depression among newly diagnosed Spanish‐speaking people living with HIV (PLWH). We also analyzed whether coping strategies mediated this relationship. Data were collected at two time points from 119 PLWH. Approximately a third of participants had scores indicative of anxiety symptoms, the same result was found for depressive symptoms. Structural equations modeling revealed that 61% of the variance of anxiety and 48% of the variance of depression 8 months after diagnosis was explained by the proposed model, which yielded a good fit to data. Anxiety and depressive symptoms were significantly and negatively predicted by positive thinking, thinking avoidance, and past resilience, and positively predicted by self‐blame. Additionally, anxiety was positively predicted by internalized stigma. Past resilience negatively predicted internalized stigma, self‐blame, and thinking avoidance and it positively predicted positive thinking. Internalized stigma positively predicted self‐blame. Moreover, internalized stigma had a significant indirect effect on anxiety symptoms through self‐blame, and past resilience had significant indirect effects on anxiety symptoms and depressive symptoms through internalized stigma and coping. The results point to the need for clinicians and policy makers to conduct systematic assessments and implement interventions to reduce internalized stigma and train people living with HIV to identify and use certain coping behaviors

Anxiety · Blame · Coping (psychology) · Depressive symptoms · Longitudinal study · Psychiatry · Psychological intervention · Stigma (botany) · Clinical Psychology · HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions · Medicine · Mental Health Treatment and Access · Psychology · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology