Role of personal resources from the perspective of experiencing tinnitus annoyance in adults

Małgorzata Fludra,Joanna Kobosko,Karina Karendys-Łuszcz,Elżbieta Gos,Henryk Skarżyński

doi:10.1007/s00405-020-05843-w

Małgorzata Fludra, Joanna Kobosko + Show 3 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s00405-020-05843-w

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Abstract

PurposeOccurrence of tinnitus can be, for a person who experiences it, a disorder affecting the overall equilibrium of the organism. To cope with it a variety of personal resources, such as positive orientation and basic hope, are mobilized. The aim of this study was to determine whether these resources are associated with the evaluation of the impact of tinnitus on the functioning of the study participants.MethodsStudy involved 176 tinnitus sufferers, including 123 women and 53 men. The results were compiled using: Positivity Scale (P-scale) for measuring positive orientation, Basic Hope Inventory (BHI-R) for measuring basic hope, the questionnaires: Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) and Tinnitus Functional Index (TFI) evaluating the impact of tinnitus on the daily functioning of the subjects, as well as a survey designed for the study, comprising questions about sociodemographic data and tinnitus history.ResultsResults of regression analysis indicated that positive orientation is the most important for the perceived tinnitus annoyance. However, no significant influence of basic hope on tinnitus annoyance was found. Among other variables taken into account in regression analysis, age and presence of additional diseases proved to be important predictors of tinnitus annoyance.ConclusionsPersonality determinants (positive orientation) are related to the perception of tinnitus annoyance. When working with a tinnitus patient, it is justified to pay attention to the existence of the positive orientation and to work on its development. Research should also be continued to search for other personal resources that affect the perceived tinnitus annoyance.

Highlights

Holistic-functional model defines health as the process of continuous balancing of human needs and environmental requirements
The aim of the study as part of this trend was to assess the importance of selected personal potentials, i.e. positive orientation and basic hope in the subjectively perceived impact of tinnitus on the daily functioning of people suffering from this ailment
Due to the fact that the investigation of basic hope was conducted using a new version of the Basic Hope Inventory (BHI-R), its correlation with the P-Scale used to evaluate positive orientation was checked

Summary

Introduction

Holistic-functional model defines health as the process of continuous balancing of human needs and environmental requirements. The person experiencing such a loss uses the resources available to them. Positive orientation is a relatively new psychological construct designed by Gian Vittorio Caprara. It integrates three components: self-esteem, life satisfaction and optimism. According to Caprara’s research, it correlates positively with the perceived state of health, which means that a higher level of this variable has an influence on a more positive assessment of health [13]. As shown in Byra’s research, positive orientation has an impact on the level of posttraumatic growth and positive adaptation among people with spinal cord injury [15]

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