Hearing That Doesn't Help: An Evaluation of Appraisal Support During High-Risk Pregnancies

Sample

Health situations are stressful for a variety of reasons, including the many unknowns. Patients are often unsure of how they should be progressing, how they should be feeling, and how they should be coping. One strategy patients use is to compare themselves to others in similar situations. In making comparisons, patients can consider if others are doing better or worse than they and they can also learn possible strategies for improving their situation. Social Comparison Theory attempts to understand the impacts of such comparisons in terms of the support they give people.