Predicting Perceived Social Support based on Perceived Stress and Cognitive Emotion Regulation in Patients with Ulcerative Colitis

The aim of present study was to predict perceived social support based on perceived stress mediated by cognitive emotion regulation in patients with ulcerative colitis.

The method of study was correlational, structural equation modeling type. The statistical population of the present study included all patients with ulcerative colitis, referred to gastroenterology clinics in Districts 4 and 7 of Tehran in 2019. Among them, 261 people were selected through purposeful sampling method. The research tools included perceived social support scale (Zimet et al., 1998), perceives stress scale (Cohen et al., 1983), and cognitive emotion regulation scale (Garnefski and Kraaij, 2006).

The results revealed a negative relationship between perceived stress and perceived social support (β=-0.13, t=2.04) and negative relationship between perceived stress and cognitive emotion regulation (β=-0.21, t=2.96) in patients with ulcerative colitis. A positive relationship was also found between cognitive emotion regulation and perceived social support (β= 0.47, t=7.18) but cognitive emotion regulation had no mediating role between perceived stress and perceived social support in patients with ulcerative colitis (β= 0.09, p>0.05).

Although there were direct relationships between perceived stress, perceived social support and cognitive emotion regulation but the results revealed no indirect relationship between perceived stress and perceived social support mediated by cognitive emotion regulation in patients with ulcerative colitis. Thus, paying attention to these variables helps researchers and therapists in design of appropriate therapy for Ulcerative Colitis patients.