Hope and symptom load: Correlates of life regard for HIV positive adults

Since HIV is now conceptualized as a chronic disease because of HAART, hope can be studied as a factor that potentially alters the course of the illness. Hope, the expectation that something worthwhile lies ahead, is correlated with enhanced mental and physical health (Heinrich, 2003). Individuals with hope are more likely to experience higher life regard (Douglas, 2001), and less affected by anxiety and depression (Farran, Herth, & Popovich, 1995). The greater the symptom load for the HIV+ adult, the lower their regard for life (Lyon, 2001). Life regard supplies people with valued goals. Making progress toward goals gives people an enjoyable sense that they are fulfilling their life purpose (Steger, 2007). In this study, 236 HIV+ adults, recruited from a Dallas-based AIDS service agency (53% male, 53% African American, and 70% income <$0,000) completed the Agency of Hope (α=.72-.86) and Pathways of Hope (α=.82-.87) subscales of the Hope Scale, the Life Regard Index (α=.83-.92) and an HIV symptom load measure. We hypothesized that lower symptom load and higher agency of hope and pathway of hope would be associated with a higher regard for life. A linear regression analysis revealed higher agency of hope (t=6.29, β=.51, p<0.001) and lower symptom load (t=-1.98, β=-.12, p<.05) explained 24% of variance in our model (Adj. R2=.24, F (9,226) =9.22, p<0.001). Hope is an important internal resource to help HIV+ persons experience meaning in life and survive HIV. Thus, facilitating hope is an important therapeutic public health goal for HIV populations in the U.S.