Adjustment to Chronic Disease: Progress and Promise in Research

In 1961, a seminal, observational study of adjustment to chronic disease appeared in the Archives of General Psychiatry (Visotsky, Hamburg, Goss, & Lebovits, 1961). Its authors posed questions regarding adjustment to polio that continue to stimulate research on chronic disease today: “How is it possible to deal with such powerful, pervasive, and enduring stresses as are involved in severe polio? What are the types of coping behavior that contribute to favorable outcomes?” (p. 28). Four decades later, theoretical and empirical consideration of these questions has produced multifaceted conceptualizations of adjustment to chronic disease, theoretical frameworks for understanding determinants of adjustment, and empirical evidence regarding factors that contribute to untoward or favorable outcomes. In this chapter, we begin with a brief discussion of the prevalence and impact of chronic disease and then consider what is meant by adjustment to chronic disease. We go on to discuss themes in theories of contributors to adjustment. Finally, we address implications for intervention and future research.