Predicting approach-avoidance: The roles of coping styles, state anxiety, and situational appraisal

Abstract

This study examined the role of dispositional coping styles, state anxiety, and situational appraisal in the prediction of situational coping strategies. One hundred and seven participants completed the Miller Behavioral Style Scale (MBSS; Miller, S.M. (1987) Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 52, 245–253), the Mainz Coping Inventory (MCI; Krohne, H.W. (1989) Advanced Behavior Research and Therapy, 11, 235–248), and the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS; Endler, N.S. and Parker, J.D.A. (1990) Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS): Manual, Toronto: Multi-Health Systems). These scales each measure the dispositional tendency to approach or avoid stressful situations. Participants then anticipated a controlled stressor, and rated their state anxiety and appraisal of the situation. Cognitive and behavioral coping strategies were recorded and coded for degree of approach or avoidance. Low avoidance and high emotion-coping scores on the CISS, and situational appraisals of high evaluation, predicted the use of less avoidant cognitive strategies. Low monitoring and high blunting scores on the MBSS predicted the increased use of behavioral avoidance strategies, but only at high levels of anxiety.