In psychology, coping is a steady cognitive and behavioral effort in responding to stress in a person’s life. It can also be defined as a conscious effort to solve personal and interpersonal matters by looking for a way to minimize stress in ones life. The easiest way that has been identified for dealing with stress is by keeping fit health wise, eating well, a lot of exercises and having adequate sleep. When one is fit health wise, they will be able to cope and reduce stress in their lives because their mind and body muscles are relaxed. Coping responses are sometimes managed by individual’s habitual traits. Furthermore, coping can also be determined by a person’s social context and the nature of the stressful environment they are in. There are various coping strategies that have been identified. Many studies done on coping strategies reveal that the most common used coping strategies are conscious and unconscious strategies and they help in stress reduction (Zeidner and Endler, 1996). In addition there are mal-adaptive ones which are also known as non-coping which increases the stress level. More studies reveal that there are problem-focused versus emotion focused, engagement versus disengagement and lastly, cognitive versus behavioral coping strategies.
According to a study done by Weiten and Lloyd (2008) on coping strategies, he classified them in three types. The appraisal focused coping strategy (adaptive cognitive), which occurs when a person changes their way of thinking about the stress they are going through. They can distance themselves from the problem. One can change their way of thinking on the problem matter by viewing it as humor and not a problem. Viewing a problem as humor is the positive method that is being used to cope with painful and most stressful situations and experiences. Viewing a situation as humor plays a very important role in stress management. Another type of coping strategy illustrated by Weiten and Lloyd is the problem focused strategy. This coping skill is an adaptive behavioral strategy that focuses on eliminating the stressor. Weiten asserts that individuals using this type of coping strategy will always try their best to deal with the root cause of the problem they are going through and look for new skills on how to handle it and eliminate it completely from their lives. The strategy is mainly used to eliminate the source of the stress. Lastly, another strategy that is suggested by Weiten is the emotion focused strategy which is mainly used to change a person’s emotional reaction to the stress (Weiten and Lloyd 2008). This strategy distracts an individual from what is really happening and make them focus on something else. This strategy manages emotions in an individual that bring out stress. Future direction on this research indicates that one most effective coping strategy will be reached upon.
Research done by Folkman and Lazarus (1980) focuses on emotion coping strategy. The two identified five emotional coping strategies: exercising self control, disclaiming, positive re-appraisal, escape avoidance and lastly accepting responsibility. Folkman and Lazarus also outlined three problem focused coping strategies namely, seeking social support, taking an initiative to get rid of the problem and lastly making a list of things to be done to eliminate the problem in ones life. A future direction on this research is that long term coping strategies which are to provide solutions to the stressor are to be determined.
There are both negative and positive techniques applied in coping. One of the positive techniques is proactive coping. This is where an individual anticipates the problem and then focuses on finding ways to cope with it. In addition, there is meaning focused coping whereby an individual concentrates on finding the meaning of the stressful experience and one last positive technique is seeking social support from other people on how to manage the stress one is undergoing. The negative techniques which are mal-adaptive only reduce symptoms but do not eliminate the stress. The mal-adaptive skills can only be used in short term as a long term solution is being looked upon. The non coping behaviors are sensitization, dissociation, anxious avoidance, and escape and safety behaviors. All these strategies maintain the problem and are not the best to be used in coping. Further research has pointed out that religious coping is also commonly used and working strategy of coping even though it is used by women other than men. The same study shows that 17% of people under stress use religion as a coping response and it work effectively for them.
Comparably, studies on strategies of coping done by Weiten and Lloyd ( 2008) proves to be the most effective compared to the others like Falkman et al. (1986). Most of the strategies they suggested are long term strategies and are satisfactory compared to the mal-adaptive strategies suggested by other researchers which are short term and unsatisfactory. Despite the fact that Falkman and Lazarus have explored this topic widely, their strategies still are not very effective because they are short term and they maintain the problem instead of giving a solution.
Social strategies help in improving oneself and find new ways of coping. This is achieved by the person under stress interacting with the people around them and through that, they learn new ways of fighting their stressors. Social workers have been of great help to individuals stressed because they help them out in coping with their issues mainly through guidance and counseling
Researchers who have done a significant work on coping strategies are Folkman and Lazarus. The two researchers have explored the topic widely and have come out with the various strategies that are commonly used even today in coping with stress. Their studies indicate that, both problem solving and emotion focused coping turns out to be the best strategies in combating stressful situations. The predominance of this coping strategy over the other is only determined by the stressful event one is going through and their ability of some people being able to cope more actively than others. Studies done by Weiten and Lloyd (2008) outshines them because they are problem solving compared to those of Folkman and Lazarus (1980).
Research on coping measures has resulted to the use of two instruments, the COPE by Carvey, Sheiers and Weinraub (1989) and the ways of measuring by Falkman et al. (1986). The ways of measurement by Falkman et al. deals with specific ways which people should apply in coping with stressful events. Individuals are chosen and asked questions on how they deal with a selected stressor by using all the types of coping strategies. The response from the individuals is then used to determine the best strategy of coping (Falkman, 1986). Comparably with COPE, it is theoretical guided because the individuals are asked to designate how they typically react to stressful events.
Coping changes from time to time depending on the stressful event a person is undergoing. Coping strategies are mainly affected by social, physiological, psychological and cultural factors and these factors should be used to determine the best coping strategy. Coping methods that are being used by individuals should have been proven through different researches that they are effective and long term so as to avoid adverse effects like mental states and substance abuse brought by short term strategies like avoidance. Short term coping strategies brings more future problems instead of solving the current ones. In essence, future studies needs to be done on the most effective strategy of coping. Many studies have been done but the results are varying and a definite result should be reached upon.
References
Weiten, W. & Lloyd, M.A. (2008) Psychology Applied to Modern Life (9th Ed.). Wadsworth Cengage Learning
Zeidner, M. & Endler, N.S. (1996) Handbook of Coping: Theory, Research, Applications. New York: John Wiley.
Folkman, S., & Lazarus, R. S. (1980). An analysis of coping in a middle-aged community sample. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 21, 219-239.
Folkman, S., Lazarus, R. S., Dunkel-Schetter, C., DeLongis, A., & Gruen, R. J. (1986). Dynamics of a stressful encounter: Cognitive appraisal, coping, and encounter outcomes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 50, 992-1003.
Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., & Weintraub, J. K. (1989). Assessing coping strategies: A theoretically based approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56, 267-283.
