Heart study researcher assesses patients’ coping skills

Clifton Addison
Clifton Addison

Jackson Heart Study (JHS) senior research scientist Dr. Clifton Addison of the School of Public Heath has developed a method to assess the coping skills of patients battling serious illnesses such as cardiovascular disease.

The evaluation is known as the Coping Skills Inventory Short-Form (CSI- SF) and has become one of the most widely used measures by researchers worldwide. CSI-SF determines how people manage stress using a 16-item survey and four coping strategies indicating problem vs. emotion-focused engagement or disengagement.

The assessment was utilized in a 13-country study to test its reliability for determining the coping skills of hemodialysis patients experiencing kidney failure.

Addison’s co-authors on this project included two other JHS researchers in the School of Public Health: Dr. Brenda W. Campbell Jenkins and Gregory Wilson Sr.