The relationship between negative affect and social inhibition with severity of coronary artery stenosis: The mediating role of anger rumination

Negative affect and social inhibition, as the main components of type D personality, have been introduced as one of the risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. Severity of the disease might be influenced by anger rumination as well. The present study aimed to examine the mediating role of anger rumination on the relationship between negative affect and social inhibition with severity of coronary artery stenosis. Method of the present descriptive study was correlational. A total of 200 patients with coronary artery disease (112 men, 88 women) participated in this study. The patients were asked to complete the Anger Rumination Scale (ARS; Sukhodolsky, Golub, & Cromwell, 2001) and Type D Personality Scale (DS14; Denollet, 1998, 2005). The results demonstrated that anger rumination, negative affect, and social inhibition had a meaningful association with severity of coronary artery stenosis (p <. 01). Based on these results, the effect of social inhibition on severity of coronary artery stenosis, the effect of social inhibition on anger rumination, and the effect of negative affect on anger rumination are statistically meaningful. The results of path analysis also showed that the relationship between negative affect and social inhibition with severity of coronary artery stenosis is mediated by anger rumination. It can be concluded that characteristics of type D personality influence severity of coronary artery stenosis through anger rumination.