Social support, coping, and depressive symptoms in cardiac illness among Hispanic and non-Hispanic White cardiac patients

Abstract

This study examined ethnic group differences in depressive symptoms in the context of cardiac illness. The participants were 132 cardiac patients equally divided among Hispanic and Non-Hispanic White men and women from cardiac clinics in Austin, Texas. The participants responded to a structured survey concerning their functional limitations, social support, coping, and depressive symptoms. The results showed that Hispanic patients reported more depressive symptoms than Non-Hispanic White cardiac patients, and that women reported more depressive symptoms than men. Physical and role limitations were positively related to depressive symptoms and social support was negatively related to depressive symptoms. A path analysis with LISREL 8 indicated that physical limitations were directly related to depressive symptoms, while the relation of role limitations was mediated by percent approach coping, and the relation of social support was partially mediated by percent approach coping. Two-group LISREL analyses by ethnicity and gender showed similar results. Implications of the results for patients with cardiac illness are discussed.

Keywords:

• Hispanic and non-Hispanic
• cardiac illness
• depressive symptoms
• coping
• social support

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by a grant from the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health to Carole K. Holahan. We wish to thank Tammy Jordan, Karina Garcia-Bravo, and Orlanda DeLeon for their assistance in data collection, and Jennifier Ragan for her assistance in library research.