Abstract
Some asthmatics show evidence of airways reactivity triggered by strong emotions. Six case studies of married patients with severe asthma are reported. The videotaped interactions of the asthmatic and his/her spouse were coded for affect and behavior. Repeated measures of pulmonary function and affective state were recorded before and after two interaction tasks. Over the course of the experimental period, two patients' pulmonary function improved and four patients' deteriorated. In general, decreased pulmonary function was associated with more self-rated hostility and depression. The results are discussed in terms of their implications for the intra- and interpersonal factors that are important in asthma management.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Browne, S., & Hyland, M. E. (1992). Mood and peak flow in asthma.Lancet, 339 118.
Busse, W. W., Kiecolt-Glaser, J. K., Coe, C., Martin, R. J., Weiss, S. T., & Parker, S. R. (1995). Stress and asthma.American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 151 249–252.
Carr, R. E., Lehrer, P. M., Rausch, L. L., & Hochron, S. M. (1994). Anxiety sensitivity and panic attacks in an asthmatic population.Behaviour Research and Therapy, 32 411–418.
Coyne, J. C. (1976). Toward an interactional description of depression.Psychiatry, 39 28–40.
Ewart, C. K. (1993). Marital interaction—The context for psychosomatic research.Psychosomatic Medicine, 55 410–412.
Ewart, C. K., Burnet, K. F., & Taylor, C. B. (1983). Communication behaviors that affect blood pressure.Behavior Modification, 7 331–334.
Hops, H., Biglan, A., Tolman, A., Arthur, J., Sherman, L., Warner, P., Romano, J., Turner, J., Friedman, L., Bulcroft, R., Holcomb, C., Oosternick, N., & Osteen, V. (1990).Living in familial environments (LIFE) coding system. Eugene: Oregon Research Institute.
Hyland, M. E. (1990). The mood-peak flow relationship in adult asthmatics: A pilot study of individual differences and direction of causality.British Journal of Medical Psychology, 63 379–384.
Isenberg, S. A., Lehrer, P. M., & Hochron, S. (1992). The effects of suggestion and emotional arousal on pulmonary function in asthma: A review and hypothesis regarding vagal mediation.Psychosomatic Medicine, 54 192–216.
Kiecolt-Glaser, J. K., Newton, T., Cacioppo, J. T., MacCallum, R. C., Glaser, R., & Malarkey, W. B. (1996). Marital conflict and endocrine function: Are men really more physiologically affected than women?Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 64 324–332.
Lane, C., & Hobfall, S. E. (1992). How loss affects anger and alienates potential supporters.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 60 935–942.
Lewis, R. A., Lewis, M. N., & Tattersfield, A. E. (1984). Asthma induced by suggestion: Is it due to airway cooling?American Review of Respiratory Diseases, 129 691–695.
Manne, S. L., & Zautra, A. J. (1989). Spouse criticism and support: Their association with coping and psychological adjustment among women with rheumatoid arthritis.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56 608–617.
Manne, S. L., & Zautra, A. J. (1990). Couples coping with chronic illness: Women with rheumatoid arthritis and their healthy husbands.Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 13 327–342.
Molfino, N. A., Nannini, L. J., Martelli, A. N., & Slutsky, A. S. (1991). Respiratory arrest in near-fatal asthma.New England Journal of Medicine, 324 285–288.
Mrazek, D. A., & Klinnert, M. (1991). Asthma: Psychoneuroimmunologic considerations. In R. Ader, D. Felten, & N. Cohen (Eds.),Psychoneuroimmunology (pp. 1013–1035). San Diego: Academic Press.
Romano, J. M., Turner, J. A., Friedman, L. S., Bulcroft, R. A., Jensen, M. P., Hops, H., & Wright, S. F. (1992). Sequential analysis of chronic pain behaviors and spouse responses.Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 60 777–782.
Schmaling, K. B., & Bell, J. (1996). Asthma and panic disorder.Archives of Family Medicine, in press.
Sly, R. M. (1988). Mortality from asthma.Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, 82 705–717.
Spanier, G. (1978). Measuring dyadic adjustment: New scales for assessing the quality of marriage and similar dyads.Journal of Marriage and the Family, 38 15–28.
Spitzer, W. P., Suissa, S., Ernst, P., Horwitz, R. I., Habbick, B., Cockcroft, D., Boivin, J. F., McNutt, M., Buist, A. S., & Rebuck, A. S. (1992). The use of beta-agonists and the risk of death and near death from asthma.New England Journal of Medicine, 326 560–561.
Steptoe, A., & Holmes, R. (1985). Mood and pulmonary function in adult asthmatics: A pilot self-monitoring study.British Journal of Medical Psychology, 58 87–94.
Zuckerman, M., & Lubin, B. (1965).Manual for the Multiple Affect Adjective Checklist. San Diego: Education and Industrial Testing Service.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Schmaling, K.B., Wamboldt, F., Telford, L. et al. Interaction of asthmatics and their spouses: A preliminary study of individual differences. J Clin Psychol Med Settings 3, 211–218 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01993907
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01993907