Metabolic control and psychological sense of control in women with diabetes mellitus:

Abstract 

Purpose: Identifying psychological strategies to buffer the adverse outcomes in people with diabetes mellitus (DM) remains a priority for many health professionals. While ‘locus of control’ (LOC) has been repeatedly investigated to this end, research findings are contradictory. The development of more complex appraisals of psychological control, and the utilization of control inventories deriving from such analyses, presents a way forward from such contradictions. Methods: Employing such a measure, this study examines the relationship between metabolic control and psychological sense of control in 96 women with DM. Results: Optimal metabolic control is significantly associated with overall sense of control, while poor metabolic control was significantly associated with experiences of loss of psychological control and feelings of inadequacy. Furthermore, poor metabolic control was significantly associated with reduced control in the specific domains of interpersonal relationships and bodily functions. Conclusions: Multidimensional control inventories enable a more complex appraisal of the relationship between metabolic control and psychological control, and in doing so, provide a way forward from problems arising from reliance on LOC constructs. Interventions for DM management relying on aspects of psychological control need to target domains beyond traditional issues of self and bodily functions.

Keywords:  Diabetes education, Diabetes mellitus, Metabolic control, Psychological sense of control, Shapiro Control Inventory