Frequency of use and impact of coping strategies assessed by the COPE Inventory and their relationships to post-event health and well-being.
In dealing with a stressful event, 440 participants reported how frequently they used a variety of different coping strategies, rated their separate impacts on problems and the associated emotions, and reported their effects on subsequent health and well-being. Coping strategies did not generally impact problems or emotions differently. Use of planning led to increased self-efficacy, which along with positive reinterpretation, predicted growth. Emotional venting and behavioral disengagement predicted diminishment, which along with mental disengagement and self-injury, predicted illness. Social support buffered against diminishment. Use of acceptance coping and seeking advice from others had both positive and negative effects on well-being.
Department of Psychology, University of South Florida, 140 7th Avenue South, St. Petersburg, Florida 33701-5016, USA. jlitman@shell.cas.usf.edu
Jordan A
JA
Litman
George D
GD
Lunsford
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D020377:Self Efficacy; D013315:Stress, Psychological; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States; D055815:Young Adult