CAUSAL ATTRIBUTIONS, HEALTH LOCUS OF CONTROL BELIEFS AND LIFE-STYLE CHANGES AMONG PREOPERATIVE CORONARY PATIENTS

This paper investigates the relationships between causal attributions. health locus of control beliefs and reported lifestyle changes among 81 male, middle-aged, pre-operative coronary artery by-pass graft patients. The results revealed a close correspondence between reported lifestyle changes and the endorsement of such factors as causal antecedents. For example, those patients who had made efforts to reduce or quit smoking as a result of their illness were also likely to rate smoking as a causal antecedent. In contrast, more general health locus of control beliefs were not associated with reported lifestyle changes. These results, when taken in conjunction with those of earlier studies, suggest that the making of particular kinds of causal attributions may be an important step in recovery from a life-threatening illness.