title: Predictive value of age for coping: the role of self-efficacy, social support satisfaction and perceived stress.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The present study was prompted by the lack of agreement on how coping changes with age. We postulate that the effect of age on coping is mediated by coping resources, such as self-efficacy, perceived stress and social support satisfaction.
  
  
  METHODS
  The participants in the study were community dwelling and aged between 22 and 88 years old. Data were collected using the General Self Efficacy Scale, the Social Support Questionnaire, the Perceived Stress Scale, the Geriatric Depression Scale, the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (life-events) and the Way of Coping Checklist.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We performed path analyses for two competitive structural models: M1 (age does not directly affect coping processes) and M2 (age directly affects coping processes). Our results supported a modified version of M2. Age was not found to predict either of two coping strategies: problem-focused coping is predicted by self-efficacy and social support satisfaction; emotion-focused coping is predicted by social support satisfaction and perceived stress.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Changes in coping over the lifespan reflect the effectiveness with which a person's adaptive processes deal with age-associated changes in self-referred beliefs and environment perception.
authors.affiliation: Department of psychology, University of Montpellier 3, France. raphael.trouillet@univ-montp3.fr
authors.forename: Raphaël
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Trouillet
authors.forename: Kamel
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Gana
authors.forename: Marcel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lourel
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Fort
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008961:Models, Structural; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult