Quality of Life and Personality in Patients on Dialysis: A Preliminary Longitudinal Study on the Role of Motivation, Coping, and Social Support

Abstract

Objective. The aim of the research is to investigate the relationship between personality traits (conscientiousness and emotional stability) and quality of life in dialysis patients, through psychosocial mediation mechanisms (autonomous motivation, problem-focused coping and social support). The study also examines the longitudinal stability of these relationships and the differences between clinical groups defined according to medical indication and patient attitude towards kidney transplantation. Materials and methods. The preliminary study included 70 dialysis patients, assessed at two time points (T1 – beginning of the study, T2 – 6 months). Standardised instruments were used to assess personality (BFI-50), motivation (TSRQ), coping (Brief COPE), social support (ISEL) and quality of life (KDQOL-SF 1.3). Statistical analyses consisted of PROCESS Model 6 for testing serial mediation and mixed ANOVA for assessing longitudinal stability and between-group differences. Results. Personality influenced quality of life through significant indirect effects of autonomous motivation (T1), problem-focused coping (T2), and social support (T2), confirming the serial mediation model (p < .05). A full mediation effect was identified for conscientiousness, whereas emotional stability showed a partial mediation effect, highlighting distinct pathways through which personality traits influence quality of life. Between T1 and T2, significant decreases were observed in physical health, F(1,66) = 2101.67, p < .01, mental health, F(1,66) = 18.41, p < .01, as well as in psychosocial resources (autonomous motivation, F(1,66) = 49.27, p < .01; problem-focused coping, F(1,66) = 26.44, p < .01; social support, F(1,66) = 49.37, p < .01). Time × group interactions were observed for both physical health and problem-focused coping F(3,66) = 3.08, p < .05. Conclusions. The preliminary study confirms hypothesis H1, demonstrating that personality traits influence quality of life through psychosocial mechanisms, and hypothesis H2 was partially confirmed: the relationships of the model remained stable over time, but the differences between groups were limited, except for problem-focused coping. These results emphasise the importance of integrating psychosocial factors into clinical practice and will be complemented by the inclusion of data from T3 to test the robustness and stability of the proposed model.