@article{ref1,
title="Understanding the association between perceived injustice, depression symptoms, and stigma in individuals with traumatic spinal cord injury",
journal="Spinal Cord",
year="2024",
author="Peiffer, Joshua W. and Monden, Kimberley R. and Kanaster, Karen and Philippus, Angela",
volume="ePub",
number="ePub",
pages="ePub-ePub",
abstract="STUDY DESIGN: This is a secondary analysis of data from a cross-sectional, observational study. <br><br>OBJECTIVES: The study aimed to determine whether stigma mediates the relationship between preceived injustice and depression symptoms among individuals with spinal cord injuries. SETTING: Secondary analysis of participants enrolled in the Spinal Cord Injury Model System at a specialty rehabilitation hospital in the Western United States. <br><br>METHODS: A sample of 225 participants completed the questionnaires; eight participants were removed due to incomplete data, resulting in a final sample size of 217 participants (79% male; 21% female). Participants were, on average, 53 years old and were predominantly male, white, and 20 years post-injury. A bootstrapping mediation analysis was conducted to evaluate the stigma-mediated relationship between injustice appraisals and depression symptoms. Injustice appraisals were assessed using the Injustice Experience Questionnaire, stigma with the Spinal Cord Injury Quality of Life Stigma-Short Form, and depression symptoms with the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. <br><br>RESULTS: Stigma was found to mediate the relationship between injustice appraisals and depression, with an estimated proportion mediated of 80.9% (p ≤ 0.0001). <br><br>CONCLUSIONS: This study provides a novel finding that the relationship between injustice appraisals and depression symptoms is mediated by stigma. Consistent with previous research, injustice appraisals were associated with greater severity of depression symptoms. <br><br>RESULTS provide further evidence for the role of injustice appraisals after spinal cord injury and a potential mechanism (i.e., stigma) by which it may exert its effect on depression symptoms.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="1362-4393",
doi="10.1038/s41393-024-01007-3",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41393-024-01007-3"
}