Illness Identity in Adults with a Chronic Illness

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Health Psychology
• Psychosomatic Medicine

Background:

• Chronic illness significantly impacts an individual's self-concept and daily life.
• Understanding how patients integrate their illness into their identity is crucial for effective care.
• Existing measures may not fully capture the multifaceted nature of illness identity.

Purpose of the Study:

• To validate a new self-report questionnaire, the Illness Identity Questionnaire (IIQ).
• To assess the degree to which a chronic illness is integrated into an adult's identity.
• To identify distinct illness identity states and their relationship with psychological and physical functioning.

Main Methods:

• The study involved two samples of adults with chronic illnesses: congenital heart disease (n=276) and multisystem connective tissue disorders (n=241).
• Participants completed self-report questionnaires assessing illness identity, psychological functioning, and physical functioning.
• Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to validate the Illness Identity Questionnaire (IIQ).

Main Results:

• The Illness Identity Questionnaire (IIQ) successfully differentiated four illness identity states: engulfment, rejection, acceptance, and enrichment.
• All four subscales of the IIQ demonstrated reliability across both study samples.
• Illness identity states of rejection and engulfment were associated with maladaptive psychological and physical functioning.
• Illness identity states of acceptance and enrichment were associated with adaptive psychological and physical functioning.

Conclusions:

• The concept of illness identity is important in understanding the experience of chronic illness.
• The Illness Identity Questionnaire (IIQ) is a reliable and valid tool for measuring four distinct illness identity states in adults with chronic illnesses.
• The findings highlight the differential impact of illness identity states on psychological and physical well-being, informing clinical interventions.