Emotion-oriented coping styles are Associated with higher stress response and lower quality of life in patients with Schizophrenia

Studies on coping with stress in schizophrenia, as it relates to stress response and quality of life (QOL), have returned inconsistent results. This study examined the relationships between coping style, stress response, and QOL in Japanese inpatients with schizophrenia. The participants included 30 inpatients with schizophrenia (SZ group) and 30 healthy controls (HC group). The Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS), Stress Responses Scale (SRS-18), and the Japanese Schizophrenia Quality of Life Scale (JSQLS) were used to assess coping style, stress, and QOL, respectively. These analyses were performed adjusted for multiple testing and potential confounding factors. The SZ group exhibited significantly lower task-oriented coping and higher emotion-oriented coping, after controlling education. There was also a significant correlation between emotion-oriented coping and high stress response in the SZ and HC groups. Additionally, social diversion negatively correlated with stress response in the HC group. There was also a significant correlation between emotion-oriented coping and two subscales of the JSQLS in the SZ group. Emotion-oriented coping was correlated with higher stress responses and lower QOL in the SZ group, whereas in the HC group, social diversion may be linked to stress reduction. Schizophrenia rehabilitation programs that encourage non-emotion-oriented coping and search for latent variables to illuminate the effects of social diversion is necessary.