The importance of enhancing self‐efficacy in rheumatoid arthritis

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Abstract
Objective. To examine relationships among changes in self‐efficacy and changes in other clinically relevant outcome measures. Method. Subjects (n = 44) were participants in a prospective, randomized stress‐management study followed over 15 months. Outcome measures included self‐efficacy, depression, pain, health status, and disease activity. Results. Correlational analyses revealed significant associations between changes in self‐efficacy (particularly total self‐efficacy) and changes in selected measures of depression, pain, health status, and disease activity. The observed associations were not due to changes in medication regimen or to nonadherence to the stress‐management program. Conclusions. Evidence is provided that induced changes in self‐efficacy following a stress‐management program were significantly related to other clinically important outcome measures.