Dynamics of Perception of Illness Along Time Among Hypertensive Patients: Influence on Well-Being

The objective of the study was to find out the difference in Illness Perception and Well-Being among three groups of hypertensive patients based on their duration of illness and to explore the relationship between the two dependent variables. A between-subjects design was adopted and 150 individuals were purposely selected and divided into three groups, based on their duration of illness, viz. less than one year, between one and five years and more than five years. The Illness Perception Questionnaire-Revised and Well-Being Self Assessment was used to measure the variables. The data was analysed using one-way ANOVA, post-hoc test and Pearson's Product-moment correlation. The three groups were found to differ significantly on the overall score of illness perception and well being and the seven dimensions of illness perception. Pair-wise comparisons of Tukey's HSD revealed that illness perception and well-being was better in the group diagnosed with more hypertension for more than five years. There was also a significant positive correlation between the two dependent variables, illness perception and well-being.