Coping Checklist Research Articles

The effects of coping strategies on Chinese behavioral habits under the SARS stress

To investigate public coping strategies and the effects of the coping strategies on the changes of people's living habits under the crisis of SARS. Methods 388 subjects finished the questionnaires including the Ways of Coping Checklist - Revised and the items about changes of people's living habits by Internet. Results Most of the subjects use the strategy of problem - focused ( t = 19. 243, P = 0.00), especially problem -solving ( t = 44.50, P = 0.00 ), and there was no difference in gender. Public's living habits changed greatly, but the correlation between the deferent coping strategies and the changes of the living habits was not found. Conclusion Under the stress of SARS, public used more problem - solving strategy. The style of strategies had little influence on the changes of living habits Key words: SARS; Coping; strategy; Living; habits; Net; investigation

Stress-Resilience, Illness, and Coping: A Person-Focused Investigation of Young Women Athletes

Coping correlates of resilience, defined as resistance to illness in the face of exposure to high numbers of negative life events, were studied in a sample of 404 young women high school athletes. Negative life events and coping strategies were assessed preseason, and daily illness data were collected during the course of the season. Among athletes with high levels of exposure to negative life events, resilient (no illness time loss) and nonresilient (upper third of time loss distribution) groups were compared on 6 scales of the Ways of Coping Checklist. Coping profiles of the groups differed significantly, with resilient athletes favoring Problem-focused Coping and Seeking Social Support, and nonresilient athletes reporting greater use of Avoidance and Blaming Others. Correlations among Problem-focused Coping, Seeking Social Support, and Minimize Threat were higher in the resilient group. Results suggest that certain coping strategies may contribute to illness-resistance in the face of high life stress.

Estratégias de enfrentamento na reabilitação do traumatismo raquimedular

International research centers are developing studies on spinal cord injury, aiming to improve rehabilitation-geared interventions and quality of life for patients. Considering the present scientific and professional interests of Health Psychology, this paper aims at comprehending the coping strategies adopted by patient and their families/caregivers during participation in a rehabilitation program. The sample included six patient/family dyads. Participants were assessed before entrance and at the end of the program, through of The Ways of Coping Checklist- Revised and a semi-structured interview. Data indicate changes in the applied coping modalities prior to rehabilitation (religiousness, positive thoughts and seeking social support) and after rehabilitation (problem-focused, positive thoughts and seeking social support).

A Multiple-Indicator Multiple-Cause Model for Posttraumatic Stress Reactions: Personality, Coping, and Maladjustment

This study aimed to develop a multiple-indicator multiple-cause model (MIMIC) to describe the relationship among posttraumatic stress (PTSD) responses, general health problems, death anxiety, personality factors, and coping strategies among community residents exposed to the technological disasters of aircraft and train crashes. One hundred forty-eight community residents, after exposure to the aircraft or train crash, were assessed using the Impact of Event Scale, the General Health Questionnaire-28, the Death Anxiety Scale, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, and the Ways of Coping Checklist. The control group (n = 90) comprised members of the general public, who had not been exposed to the disasters, from another city. The model showed significant associations between the impact of the disaster and general health problems, which varied depending on where community residents lived in relation to the disaster site, whether they were present when the disaster occurred, and the type of disaster. The model also suggested that death anxiety was associated with type of disaster and neuroticism. The model supported the interactive model in that personality factors interacted with coping strategies in maintaining or generating PTSD and general health problems. After exposure to technological disasters, community residents could develop PTSD and general health problems; however, increased death anxiety was a separate psychological reaction. The interaction between certain personality traits and coping strategies was one reason for PTSD and general health problems.

A comparative study of coping skills and body image: Mastectomized vs. lumpectomized patients with breast carcinoma

Background:The diagnosis of breast cancer encompasses not only physical, but also social and psychological implications because of the importance of the breast in a woman's body image, sexuality and motherhood. Women may experience a range of concerns and fears including physical appearance and disfigurement, the uncertainty about recurrence and the fear of death. There are no Indian studies on this subject.Aim:This study explores the various concerns of mastectomized and lumpectomized (breast conserved) patients, determines the coping mechanisms employed and the resolution of concerns. The levels of anxiety and depression in both groups were also studied.Methods:Seventy-five patients with breast carcinoma (50 mastectomized and 25 lumpectomized) were evaluated. The concern and coping checklist of Devlen was used. The severity of anxiety and depression was measured using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS).Results:Body image or disfigurement was a concern only in the mastectomized group. Concerns were equally resolved between the two groups except for sexual role and performance, wherein the concern was resolved to a lesser extent in the mastectomized group. Coping strategies employed were effective in the resolution of concerns except for sexual role and performance, and recurrence or relapse. No statistically significant difference was found in the depression and anxiety levels of the two groups.Conclusion:Concern regarding sexual role and performance was resolved to a lesser extent in the mastectomized group. Specific psychological intervention is necessary to enhance coping strategies with regard to concerns of body image, and sexual role and performance.

Psychopathology in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: A preliminary study with 27 ALS patients

Considering the few studies published on the psychopathology of ALS patients, we carried out a preliminary study evaluating depression, anxiety, emotional reactions and coping strategies in such patients. Twenty-seven ALS patients were included and evaluated using a semi-structured interview, after which they were asked to complete a questionnaire. The rater asessed the DSM-IV criteria for a major depressive episode, dysthymia and generalized anxiety, using the MADRS scale for depression, the Covi anxiety scale and the Depressive Mood scale. Subsequently, patients completed the Ways of Coping checklist. Patients were neither anxious nor depressed. Patients whose diagnosis was recent (less than six months) presented greater emotional deficit. Patients younger than 50 years of age used problem focused strategies more frequently. Those having received the diagnosis in the preceeding six months used emotion focused strategies significantly more often.The absence of characterized depression and anxiety confirmed results of the literature. The significance of this study is found in the observation of specific emotional reactions present in the first six months following diagnosis disclosure. The results show that it is useful to continue the affective evaluation of these patients and to undertake longitudinal studies starting at the time of diagnosis disclosure.

The measurement of coping responses: Validity of the Billings and Moos Coping Checklist

Objective The primary aim of the study was to investigate the factor structure and psychometric properties of the modified Coping Checklist. Methods Self-report questionnaires asking about coping responses and mental health were administered to 515 undergraduate university students and to 119 patients awaiting elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery. Confirmatory (CFA) and exploratory factor analyses (PCA) were used to summarize and describe coping responses. Results CFA indicated that the subscale structure originally proposed for the Coping Checklist did not adequately fit the data. Subsequent PCA resulted in four factors: (1) Positive reappraisal; (2) Seeking support; (3) Avoidance; and (4) Information seeking. Internal consistencies ranged between .41 and .62 and 12-week test–retest reliability ranged between .59 and .71. Evidence for the concurrent validity of the solution generated by PCA was demonstrated by low to moderate correlations between the four factors identified and demographic and psychosocial measures. Conclusion Even with modifications to the Coping Checklist, it is recommended that researchers investigate alternative methods of assessing coping responses in health psychology settings.

The measurement of coping responsesValidity of the Billings and Moos Coping Checklist

The primary aim of the study was to investigate the factor structure and psychometric properties of the modified Coping Checklist. Self-report questionnaires asking about coping responses and mental health were administered to 515 undergraduate university students and to 119 patients awaiting elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery. Confirmatory (CFA) and exploratory factor analyses (PCA) were used to summarize and describe coping responses. CFA indicated that the subscale structure originally proposed for the Coping Checklist did not adequately fit the data. Subsequent PCA resulted in four factors: (1) Positive reappraisal; (2) Seeking support; (3) Avoidance; and (4) Information seeking. Internal consistencies ranged between .41 and .62 and 12-week test–retest reliability ranged between .59 and .71. Evidence for the concurrent validity of the solution generated by PCA was demonstrated by low to moderate correlations between the four factors identified and demographic and psychosocial measures. Even with modifications to the Coping Checklist, it is recommended that researchers investigate alternative methods of assessing coping responses in health psychology settings.

Relationships of Positive and Negative Affect to Coping and Functional Outcomes in Systemic Sclerosis

This study examined the role of two distinct factors of emotion, positive (PA) and negative affect (NA), in adjustment to a chronic rheumatic disease, systemic sclerosis (SSc). Ninety-two patients with a confirmed diagnosis of SSc completed self-report measures assessing PA and NA (Positive and Negative Affect Schedule), coping (Revised Ways of Coping Checklist), and functional outcomes (pain and disability measured with the Health Assessment Questionnaire). Confirmatory factor analysis indicated that PA and NA constituted separate, negatively correlated factors. PA and NA showed differential relationships to coping and functional outcomes. Affect mediated the association between coping and functional outcomes after controlling for disease severity. The results suggest the importance of both PA and NA as factors influencing adjustment to chronic illness.

Coping with chronic pain

Many models of pain give coping an important role in understanding adaptation to chronic pain. Among these, Lazarus and Folkman's cognitive-phenomenological model of stress and coping provides a theoretical framework to conceptualise stress phenomena and coping strategies related to chronic pain. Chronic pain often necessitates new coping skills. An understanding of the concept of coping and how the patients cope is therefore crucial for the success of rehabilitation. The current study examined how coping, as measured by the Ways of Coping Checklist, was related to medical variables, depression measured by the Short Zung depression rating scale, and Rosenberg's self-esteem scale. The study sample consisted of 88 people who were recruited for a multidisciplinary pain management programme. Data were collected as part of a routine pre-treatment evaluation. Results indicated that the most predominant stressors were related to familylife and social activities. We also recognised on the one hand, appraising pain as a challenge was predictive of problem-focused coping, while on the other hand, appraising pain as a threat, experiencing depression, and reduced self-esteem were predictive of emotion-focused coping. Clinical implications of these results in nursing are discussed.

Coping behavior in patients with panic disorder.

The purpose of the present paper was to investigate the role of coping behavior in patients with panic disorder (PD). This was done by evaluating three items of coping behavior (seeking of social support, wishful thinking and avoidance) in the Ways of Coping Checklist. The subjects consisted of 30 patients with PD (26 with agoraphobia). Coping behavior and the severity of PD was investigated at baseline and at 24 months (the final outcome). At baseline there were no gender differences in coping behavior. The severity of panic attacks significantly correlated with that of agoraphobia. The baseline severity of PD (panic attacks and agoraphobia) did not correlate with coping behavior. At the outcome assessment there was no significant correlation between the severity of panic attack and coping behavior. The severity of agoraphobia at final outcome and the coping behavior (seeking of social support) at baseline were significantly correlated. In the group that had remission in agoraphobia (the good outcome group), the severity of agoraphobia at baseline was significantly lower and the seeking of social support coping behavior was significantly higher than that of the poor outcome group. No significant difference in panic attack severity was noted between the good and poor outcome groups. Discriminant analysis revealed that seeking of social support coping behavior was a significant discriminant factor of agoraphobia. Although these are preliminary data, special coping behavior might be related to improvement of agoraphobia in patients with PD.

Revision and Development of a Coping Checklist for Sport Based on Test Administration Immediately Following Participation

The purpose of this study was to revise and develop a coping checklist for sport. A higher order factor (engagement and disengagement coping) was identified to examine coping in sport situations. A revised 50-item Ways of Coping Checklist (WCC) was administered to 106 female athletes immediately after they had participated in a sport competition. Confirmatory factor analyses were performed on the revised WCC to examine the theoretically identified engagement and disengagement coping domains. As a result a revised 18-item inventory was internally consistent and had a better 2-factor structure than the "revised" 50-item inventory. The 18-item Coping Checklist for Sport was then administered to 4 different female and male participants (n = 197, n = 178, n = 102, n = 104). Coping items and factor loadings indicated a similar pattern across the different sport competitions and for men and women.

Do health causal attributions and coping strategies act as moderators of quality of life in peritoneal dialysis patients?

Objective The present study aimed at testing the relationships between health causal attribution and coping mechanisms with quality of life (QOL) in patients who have end-stage renal disease (ESRD) undergoing a peritoneal dialysis (PD) treatment. It was hypothesized that QOL should be negatively associated with the severity of the disease. Problem-focused coping, internal health-related locus of control (HRLOC) and medical power HRLOC were hypothesized as positive moderators preserving a better QOL, after controlling for the severity of the disease. Methods A total of 47 PD patients completed the Kidney Disease Quality of Life (KD-QOL) scale encompassing the Medical Outcomes Study Short-Form (MOS SF-36) self-administered questionnaire, the Multidimensional Health Locus of Control scale and the Ways of Coping Check-List (WCCL) scale. Results Low scores for all QOL scores were found except for pain dimension, as compared with scores available from a general French population. Globally, QOL was not related to the severity of the disease. Univariate analysis showed that the physical component score (PCS) of QOL was positively associated with internal HRLOC ( r=.35; P<.05), and negatively with medical power HRLOC ( r=−.36; P<.05). Multivariate analysis adjusting for age confirmed these results. Mental component score (MCS) was negatively associated with the use of emotion-focused coping and seeking social support ( r=−.45; P=.001 and r=−.30; P<.05, respectively), the first association persisting in multivariate analysis. Neither PCS nor MCS was linked to the use of problem-focused coping. Conclusion These results suggest that physical QOL is all the more preserved when patients are more convinced that their behaviour can influence their health condition and that psychological QOL is all the more impaired when health condition is perceived as less controllable, requiring emotion-focused coping (avoidance strategies). Health causal attributions and coping act respectively as moderators of physical and psychological components of QOL.

Appraisal and coping strategy use in victims of school bullying.

Transactional models of coping (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984) can contribute to our understanding of why some children cope effectively with bullying while others suffer negative outcomes. However, previous research has relied on coping measures that are not comparable with adult measures, restricting investigation of developmental trends. Additionally, previous research has not included appraisals when measuring coping using an established coping measure. To examine the factor structure of a coping measure that is directly comparable with the adult literature; to examine the content of pupils' threat and challenge appraisals concerning bullying; and to examine the relationships between appraisals and coping strategy use within the victims of school bullying. Participants were 459 children aged 9 - 14 years. A self-report bullying questionnaire, incorporating Halstead et al.'s (1993) adolescent version of the Ways of Coping Checklist, was completed by participants. Also included were control, threat and challenge appraisal items. Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed that Halstead et al.'s four-factor model of coping is valid for a population of school bullying victims. Content validity of items used to measure threat and challenge appraisal was demonstrated. Ambiguity of challenge appraisal influenced the use of Wishful Thinking, Seeks Social Support and Problem Focused coping. Wishful Thinking was also influenced by control appraisal. Avoidance coping was not influenced by the appraisals measured. Halstead et al.'s Revised Ways of Coping Checklist can be used to measure coping amongst child and adolescent victims of bullying. Furthermore, including appraisal variables improves our understanding of individual differences between victims' coping strategy choices.

Facteurs psychosociaux prédictifs du sentiment de solitude : approche cognitivo-comportementale

The objective of the present study was to explore the psychological and social mechanisms leading to loneliness. Based on cognitive and behavioral approaches developed in health psychology, we tested several models that might allow one to predict certain determinants of the feeling of loneliness. Included in the study were 45 individuals suffering from loneliness who had come to one of several Centres Thérapeutiques de Lutte contre l'Isolement "Recherche et Rencontres". The subjects were asked to respond to four scales: the UCLA loneliness scale, Cattell's 16 PF 5 personality scale, Sherbourne and Stewart's social support scale, and Lazarus and Folkman's Ways of Coping Checklist. The present results confirm the previously reported deficit of social support perceived by subjects in this population. Concerning their personality, this population sample falls outside national norms in 7 dimensions: compared to the general population, the socially isolated individual appears essentially to be introverted and anxious, emotionally unstable, avoiding conflicts, timid and ill at ease in the company of -others, imaginative and distracted. To face up to their feeling of loneliness, they have a tendency to use coping styles such as "keep it to yourself" and "wishful thinking". On the other hand, they resort very little to social support. Among the pertinent variables, 5 predictive factors were recognized, and they could explain 51% of the variance in the feeling of loneliness: they include the global score of perceived social support, coping strategies focussed around wishful thinking, coping strategies that avoid resort to social support, personality traits of imaginativeness and absent-mindedness, and an introverted personality. Three predictors contributed independently to the model: absence of resort to social support, the use of wishful thinking, and the imaginative-distracted personality trait. We likewise found evidence for a mediator role of the absence of resort to social support in the relation between the levels of perceived social support and the feeling of loneliness. Thus it is not so much the deficit in the subject's social relations that determines his feeling of loneliness as it is his difficulty of appealing to others when in distress. These results suggest that it would be judicious to develop specific therapeutic interventions for this type of person that would permit them to adjust more actively and to behave more realistically.

Coping and optimism in relation to dental health behaviour--a study among Finnish young adults.

Our aim in this paper was to investigate active coping in relation to optimism, dental health behavior and self-reported dental health among 31-yr-old men and women born in Northern Finland in 1966. Connecting coping strategies and optimism with health behavior is an unexplored approach in dentistry, even though both coping strategies and optimism are known to be associated with many health outcomes. The data were based on a postal questionnaire, which was sent to the Northern Finland 1966 Birth Cohort at age 31 yr (n = 11 541). The number of replies was 8690, with a 75.3% response rate. Active coping was measured using the Ways of Coping Checklist and optimism using a revised Life Orientation Test. Prevalence proportion ratios were estimated by applying a log-binomial regression models. The results showed a correlation between active coping and optimism. Both active coping and optimism were related to different dental health behaviors. The effect of active coping on dental health behavior disappeared by adjusting for optimism, education and gender. The results support the previous findings that active coping acts as a mediator between optimism and health. Optimism was also related to self-reported dental health, which supports the comprehensiveness of optimism as a determinant for health.

Family caregiving in depression: impact on caregivers' daily life, distress, and help seeking

Background: Attention to caregiving consequences has been mainly restricted to schizophrenia, although studies suggest that relatives of depressed patients also experience considerable distress. These studies, however, were conducted on small samples or with nonvalidated instruments. In our study, the caregiving consequences of 260 spouses and relatives of depressed patients were assessed with a well-validated 31-item questionnaire, the Involvement Evaluation Questionnaire (IEQ). Methods: The IEQ was mailed to spouses and relatives of patients with major depression, dysthymic disorder, or other depressive disorders. Other instruments used were the Ways of Coping Checklist (WCC), a Dutch Social Support Questionnaire, and the Zung Self-rating Depression Scale (SDS). Results: About 25–50% of caregivers worried about the patient's general health, treatment, safety, and future. They had to urge the patient to undertake activities, or took over tasks. There were relational strains, and they felt burdened, especially when the patient was in an acute phase. Caregivers often felt distressed and had to visit a (mental) health practitioner. Also, children were affected; caregivers reported high levels of difficult behavior, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, less playing, and less attention at school. Caregiving consequences occur less often than in schizophrenia, but the patterns are quite comparable. Conclusions: Caregiving consequences in depression occur frequently and cause distress in caregivers and patient's children. Attention should be paid to support relatives and spouses of depressed patients. Special attention should be paid to patient's children.

Coping and Subjective Wellbeing in Women with Multiple Roles

Married, working women experience a considerable amount of strain from their multiple roles. At the same time, studies indicate that they enjoy a high level of wellbeing. While the nature of employment and the level of spousal support have been examined in relation to wellbeing, the role of coping styles has not received much attention. To examine the role of work-related factors, availability of support and coping styles as predictors of wellbeing. Sixty married, working women were individually interviewed with regard to reasons for employment and support availability, and administered the Coping Checklist and Subjective Wellbeing Inventory. On stepwise multiple regression analysis, greater use of social support seeking and less use of denial as coping styles, absence of multiple role strain, working to be financially independent, availability of support and refusal of job promotion were significant predictors of wellbeing. In working women with multiple roles, enhancing problem and emotion focused coping by strengthening the use of the support network is important for wellbeing.

Coping strategies of panic and control subjects undergoing lactate infusion during magnetic resonance imaging confinement.

The psychological reactions and coping strategies used in response to a behavioral contingency (confinement in a magnetic resonance imaging [MRI] scanner) during a biological challenge (sodium lactate infusion) were systematically studied in 13 subjects with panic disorder (PD) and 11 control subjects using the Claustrophobia Questionnaire (CQ) and the Revised Ways of Coping Checklist (RWCCL). All participants were able to successfully complete the experimental procedure. Findings suggest between-group coping strategy differences in response to general stressors, but relative convergence of coping strategies in response to the experimental procedure, with relatively greater emphasis on problem-focused coping approaches. These observations suggest that PD patients are able to engage in effective coping strategies in response to stressful but highly structured experimental situations. An overall pre-post MR scanning reduction in the fear of restriction but not suffocation was observed for the combined sample, primarily reflecting changes in the control group. Among PD subjects, higher levels of suffocation fears were maintained despite emergence of more problem-focused coping in the experimental situation.

Development of a Measure of Coping with Multiple Sclerosis Caregiving

Development of a self-report measure of coping specific to multiple sclerosis (MS) caregiving is needed to advance our understanding of the role of coping in adaptation to caring for a person with MS and to contribute to a lack of empirical data on MS caregiving. A total of 213 MS caregivers and their care recipients completed a Coping with MS Caregiving Inventory (CMSCI) and measures of adjustment (psychological distress), appraisal and illness. A subsample ( n = 64) also completed the Ways of Coping Checklist (WCC) and additional adjustment measures (depression, caregiving impact, dyadic adjustment, and relationship conflict and reciprocity). Factor analyses revealed 5 factors: Supportive Engagement, Criticism and Coercion, Practical Assistance, Avoidance, and Positive Reframing. Subscales had internal reliabilities comparable to similar scales and were empirically distinct. Preliminary construct validation data are consistent with recent MS caregiving research that links passive avoidant emotion-focused coping with poorer adjustment, and relationship-focused coping caregiving research that links greater reliance on positive relationship-focused coping and less reliance on criticism with better adjustment. Results extend this research by revealing new relations between coping and adaptation to MS caregiving. Convergent validation data suggest that although the inventory differs from the WCC, it does share certain conceptual similarities with this scale.