Relationships between adjustment to HIV and both social support and coping.

This study examined the relationships between HIV stage, social support, coping strategies, and adjustment to HIV. Ninety-six HIV-infected gay men and 33 seronegative comparison group participants participated in the study. In general, coping strategies and social support did not differ according to HIV stage. As predicted, adjustment was related to social support and coping strategies. Coping strategies were linked to psychosocial adjustment, whereas social support was more strongly associated with health-related variables. There was little evidence of buffering effects of either coping strategies or social support. Four coping strategies were related to low levels of psychological distress. Contrary to expectation, the relationships between coping strategies and adjustment did not vary as a function of HIV stage. However, the relationship between adjustment and some elements of social support varied as a function of HIV stage.