THE MEDIATING ROLE OF PERCEIVED STRESS IN THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DIMENSIONS OF SOCIAL SUPPORT AND SELF-CARE IN PATIENTS WITH ASTHMA

Research literature shows that social support is related to self-care in patients with asthma, but the underlying mechanisms of this relationship need further research. This study was conducted to investigate the mediating role of perceived stress in the relationship between social support and self-care dimensions in patients with asthma.

The present study was descriptive and correlational. The statistical population of the present study consisted of all patients with asthma in the specialized asthma clinic of Sayad Shirazi Hospital in Gorgan. The sample consisted of 127 subjects who were selected by available sampling method and answered the standard questionnaires of perceived stress by Cohen et al. (1983), social support of Simat et al. (1988), and Persian self-harm (2006). Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and path analysis.

The results showed the effect of social support on family (β = 0.11, p <0.01), the effect of social support on friends (β = 0.09, p <0.01), and the effect of social support on others (08 Β = 0, p <0.01) are significant with the mediating role of perceived stress on positive self-care.

Based on the findings, it can be concluded that social support affects self-care through perceived stress. Therefore, paying attention to interventions and training in stress management and gaining social support can be a good way to increase self-care.