Cori Bussolari

Bio: Cori Bussolari is an academic researcher from University of San Francisco. The author has contributed to research in topics: Grief & Mental health. The author has an hindex of 10, co-authored 17 publications receiving 480 citations.

What Works in Coping With HIV? A Meta-Analysis With Implications for Coping With Serious Illness

Abstract: Knowledge of effective ways of coping with HIV is critical to help individuals with HIV maintain the best possible psychological and physical well-being. The purpose of the present article is to determine, through meta-analysis, the strength of the evidence regarding 2 questions: (a) Which types of coping are related to psychological and physical well-being among people with HIV? and (b) Do contextual (pre?post introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapies [HAART]; time since diagnosis), measurement (HIV-related event vs. generic prompts for coping measurement), or individual (gender) variables affect the extent to which coping is related to physical and psychological well-being? The authors' analysis demonstrates that Direct Action and Positive Reappraisal were consistently associated with better outcomes in people coping with HIV across affective, health behavior, and physical health categories. In contrast, disengagement forms of coping, such as Behavioral Disengagement and Use of Alcohol or Drugs to Cope, were consistently associated with poorer outcomes. The findings also indicate that in some cases, coping effectiveness was dependent on contextual factors, including time since diagnosis and the advent of HAART.

A positive affect intervention for people experiencing health-related stress: Development and non-randomized pilot test

Abstract: In this article we present background, theoretical rationale, and pilot data on the development of an intervention designed to increase positive affect in people living with serious health-related stress. This proof-of-concept study demonstrated that a multiple-component positive affect intervention is feasible and acceptable for people newly diagnosed with HIV. Retention in the intervention and adherence to home practice were high. Participants reported significant increases in positive affect and significant decreases in negative affect. This positive affect intervention can serve as a template for programs to be developed to help people experiencing health-related and other types of life stress.

Chaos Theory as a Model for Life Transitions Counseling: Nonlinear Dynamics and Life's Changes

Abstract: Chaos theory is presented for counselors working with clients experiencing life transitions. It is proposed as a model that considers disorder, unpredictability, and lack of control as normal parts of transition processes. Nonlinear constructs from physics are adapted for use in counseling. The model provides a method clients can use to reconstruct their own alternative life narratives, a framework in which life stories are understood, and a means to facilitate cocreation of adaptive interventions.

The Initial Months of COVID-19: Dog Owners' Veterinary-Related Concerns

Abstract: Veterinarians, like many other professions, were significantly impacted by the onset of COVID-19 in the spring of 2020. Standard practices were disrupted, and veterinary hospitals had to quickly modify standard protocols to safely serve their clients and patients. The purpose of this study was to better understand dog owners' fears and concerns pertaining to veterinary care and obtainment of pet care products and food during the lock down phase of a pandemic to be better prepared to address these concerns now and in the future. To this end, an online, anonymous, cross-sectional survey was designed and distributed to adult dog owners via social media. The results, from a total of 4,105 participants (the majority from the United States and Canada), indicated substantial areas of concern. The number one concern of dog owners during this time was the availability of emergency veterinary care. Owners under 30 years of age, compared to older owners, were significantly more concerned about both availability and cost of veterinary care (emergency and non-emergency). The ability to care for one's dog if they were to become ill was a concern for many owners, yet only 60% had identified a caretaker for their dog if one was needed. These results suggest that the majority of dog owners remained true steadfast guardians of their dogs, continuing to make them a priority, even during pandemic times. Suggestions to help mitigate dog owners' concerns and improve communication between owners and veterinarian teams are offered.

Continuing Bonds and Psychosocial Functioning in a Recently Bereaved Pet Loss Sample

Abstract: Research has shown that pet loss can be a devastating and complex experience for some human survivors, yet this loss may not be fully recognized by friends, partners, or acquaintances as a signific...

Personality and Coping

Abstract: Personality psychology addresses views of human nature and individual differences. Biological and goal-based views of human nature provide an especially useful basis for construing coping; the five-factor model of traits adds a useful set of individual differences. Coping—responses to adversity and to the distress that results—is categorized in many ways. Meta-analyses link optimism, extraversion, conscientiousness, and openness to more engagement coping; neuroticism to more disengagement coping; and optimism, conscientiousness, and agreeableness to less disengagement coping. Relations of traits to specific coping responses reveal a more nuanced picture. Several moderators of these associations also emerge: age, stressor severity, and temporal proximity between the coping activity and the coping report. Personality and coping play both independent and interactive roles in influencing physical and mental health. Recommendations are presented for ways future research can expand on the growing understanding of how personality and coping shape adjustment to stress.

Coping with chronic illness in childhood and adolescence.

Abstract: Chronic illnesses and medical conditions present millions of children and adolescents with significant stress that is associated with risk for emotional and behavioral problems and interferes with adherence to treatment regimens. We review research on the role of child and adolescent coping with stress as an important feature of the process of adaptation to illness. Recent findings support a control-based model of coping that includes primary control or active coping (efforts to act on the source of stress or one's emotions), secondary control or accommodative coping (efforts to adapt to the source of stress), and disengagement or passive coping (efforts to avoid or deny the stressor). Evidence suggests the efficacy of secondary control coping in successful adaptation to chronic illness in children and adolescents, disengagement coping is associated with poorer adjustment, and findings for primary control coping are mixed. Avenues for future research are highlighted.

Seeing the silver lining: cognitive reappraisal ability moderates the relationship between stress and depressive symptoms.

Abstract: Individuals differ in their adjustment to stressful life events, with some exhibiting impaired functioning, including depression, while others exhibit impressive resilience. The present study examined the hypothesis that the ability to deploy a particularly adaptive type of emotion regulation-cognitive reappraisal-may be a protective factor. It expands upon existing research in three ways. First, participants' ability to use reappraisal (cognitive reappraisal ability: CRA) was measured by using a behavioral challenge that assessed changes in experiential and physiological domains, rather than questionnaires. Second, all participants had been exposed to one or more recent stressful life events, a context in which emotion regulation may be particularly important. Third, a community sample of 78 women aged 20 to 60 was recruited, as opposed to undergraduates. Results indicate that, at low levels of stress, participants' CRA was not associated with depressive symptoms. However, at high levels of stress, women with high CRA exhibited less depressive symptoms than those with low CRA, suggesting that CRA may be an important moderator of the link between stress and depressive symptoms.

If, Why, and When Subjective Well-Being Influences Health, and Future Needed Research.

Abstract: We review evidence on whether subjective well-being (SWB) can influence health, why it might do so, and what we know about the conditions where this is more or less likely to occur. This review also explores how various methodological approaches inform the study of the connections between subjective well-being and health and longevity outcomes. Our review of this growing literature indicates areas where data are substantial and where much more research is needed. We conclude that SWB can sometimes influence health, and review a number of reasons why it does so. A key open question is when it does and does not do so-in terms of populations likely to be affected, types of SWB that are most influential (including which might be harmful), and types of health and illnesses that are most likely to be affected. We also describe additional types of research that are now much needed in this burgeoning area of interest, for example, cross-cultural studies, animal research, and experimental interventions designed to raise long-term SWB and assess the effects on physical health. This research area is characterised both by potentially extremely important findings, and also by pivotal research issues and questions.

In search of durable positive psychology interventions: Predictors and consequences of long-term positive behavior change

Abstract: A number of positive psychology interventions have successfully helped people learn skills for improving mood and building personal resources (e.g., psychological resilience and social support). However, little is known about whether intervention activities remain effective in the long term, or whether new resources are maintained after the intervention ends. We address these issues in a 15-month follow-up survey of participants from a loving-kindness meditation intervention. Many participants continued to practice meditation, and they reported more positive emotions (PEs) than those who had stopped meditating or had never meditated. All participants maintained gains in resources made during the initial intervention, whether or not they continued meditating. Continuing meditators did not differ on resources at baseline, but they did show more PE and a more rapid PE response to the intervention. Overall, our results suggest that positive psychology interventions are not just efficacious but of significant value in participants' real lives.