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The aim of the study was to develop and to assess the psychometric properties of the Problematic Support Scale, among patients with systemic lupus erythematosus. An online questionnaire was filled in by 344 systemic lupus erythematosus patients with a mean age of 39.66 years. Explorative factor analysis, later validated by confirmative factor analysis, showed the emergence of a two-factor structure in types of support provided: denying/uninformed support and oppressive support. Denying/uninformed support includes offers of support that neglect the disease manifestations and consequences. Oppressive support describes social support offers which are perceived as excessive and oppressive. Results confirm previous qualitative evidence and demonstrate good reliability and concurrent validity of the Problematic Support Scale. Theoretical and methodological implications for the study of social support are discussed.

Internet forums represent a useful but understudied resource to understand psychosocial aspects of living with systemic lupus erythematosus. This study was aimed to describe the demand/supply of social support through the Internet in relation with the description of personal illness experiences. All the posts (118) from an Italian forum for systemic lupus erythematosus patients were collected and analyzed combining qualitative content analysis with statistical textual analysis. The results showed different purposes for posts: starting new relationships, seeking information, receiving emotional support, and giving a contribution. Lexical analysis identified three ways of describing patients’ experiences. Discussion focuses on the relationship between the requested/offered support and systemic lupus erythematosus experiences.

Research on the consequences of motor vehicle accidents centres mainly on the assessment and treatment of post-traumatic psychological–behavioural reactions of the people involved. Few studies have explored the experience of surviving a serious accident and its impact on different dimensions of individuals' lives. This qualitative study aims at investigating adaptation strategies and quality of life of 20 severely injured accident survivors who spent several months in an intensive care unit of a hospital, and who still suffer permanent injuries of varying extent. Participants completed individual in-depth interviews which were subsequently analysed according to the grounded theory method. The findings indicate that the adaptation process follows a sequence of temporal phases (‘past–present’, ‘present’, ‘future’ and ‘being’), characterized by different emotional and behavioural reactions, perceived needs, and by the adoption of specific coping strategies. The duration of the adaptation process is influenced by the severity of the injury suffered, participants' age at the time of the trauma, the occurrence of coma and the availability of social support in participants' life environment.