Table 1 Means (and standard deviations) across illness perception (IPQ-R), social support (SSUK) and health- related quality of life (SF-36) scales and description of scores
|  | Items in scale/ Ref Range | Mean (SD) | Min–max | Higher score implies |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Illness perception | ||||
 Identity | 14 / 0–14 | 4.49 (2.54) | 1–13 | More symptoms experienced and attributed to RA |
 Timeline (acute/chronic) | 5 / 5–25 | 20.48 (3.53) | 6–25 | Stronger belief in chronic course of RA |
 Consequences | 5 / 5–25 | 15.00 (5.25) | 5–24 | Greater perceived influences of RA |
 Treatment control | 4 / 4–20 | 13.53 (2.66) | 5–20 | Greater perceived control by RA treatment |
 Personal control | 4 / 4–20 | 12.64 (3.32) | 4–20 | Greater perceived personal control |
 Illness coherence | 5 / 5–25 | 15.88 (4.21) | 5–25 | A better understanding of the illness |
 Timeline (cyclical) | 4 / 4–20 | 13.53 (3.30) | 6–20 | Stronger belief in repeated recurrence of RA |
 Emotional representation | 5 / 5–25 | 14.74 (5.16) | 5–25 | Greater feelings of concern about RA |
Social support | ||||
 Positive support | 4 / 0–16 | 12.7 (3.2) | 4–16 | Higher level of positive social support |
 Negative interaction | 4 / 0–16 | 5.5 (3.7) | 5–16 | Higher level of detrimental social interactions |
Health-related quality of life | ||||
 Physical quality of life Mental quality of life | / | 38.38 (9.76) | 13.84–57.34 | Better physical quality of life |
/ | 46.94 (12.53) | 13.89–68.98 | Better mental quality of life | |