Description: This presentation discusses research on vitality in HIV+ adults. The authors hypothesized that HIV+ adults with higher levels of social support and life regard will correspondingly report higher levels of vitality. A linear regression analysis supported the authors' hypothesis that social support (t = 2.1, β = 0.21, p - .05), and life regard (t = 5.7, β = 0.04, p = .001) were significantly associated with vitality, accounting for 40% of the variance in the authors' model (Adj. R2 = 0.40, F(5, 57) = 9.33, p = .001)

Description: This presentation discusses research on guilt, self-esteem, coping strategies and stress in college students. The authors used a cross-sectional, correlation study that focused on guilt, self-esteem and three maladaptive subscales in a single model predicting perceived stress in college students. Using Lazarus and Folkman's Stress-Coping model (1984) as a framework, the author hypothesizes that higher levels of hostile guilt and Brief Cope's three subscales of disengagement, substance, distraction and lower self-esteem will account for a significant portion of the variance in perceived stress in students.

Description: This presentation discusses research on perceived stress as a mediator between self-efficacy and depression in human immunodeficiency virus positive (HIV+) individuals. In persons living with HIV, treatment has shifted towards chronic illness management since the introduction of highly active retroviral therapy. Coping with life threatening illness is stressful. Stress occurs when environmental stressors (e.g., HIV+ stigma) overwhelm an individual's ability to handle them effectively. HIV+ individuals' inability to cope with stress is associated with increased depression, and worse treatment outcome (Remien et al., 2006). Self-efficacy is perceived feeling of control over a taxing situation. Behaviorally, HIV+ self-efficacious individuals adaptively manage stress (Colodro, Godoy-Izquierdo, & Godoy, 2010). Stress uses resources needed to deal with depression; managing stress may reduce psychological impairment (Scott-Sheldon, Fielder, & Kalichman, 2008). The authors hypothesize that higher self-efficacy is associated with decreased depression, and that stress mediates this relationship. Future longitudinal studies focusing on self-efficacious stress interventions may reduce depression in HIV+ individuals.