Disengagement-oriented Coping Research Articles

Coping profiles of adolescent football players and association with interpersonal coping: Do emotional competence and psychological need satisfaction matter?

Using a person-centered approach, the present study aimed to investigate the coping profiles of adolescent football players involved in elite football training centers. The purposes were to (1) identify coping profiles based on the reported use of multiple coping strategies in response to competitive stress, (2) explore whether emotional competencies and psychological need satisfaction would predict coping profile membership, and (3) examine the extent to which coping profiles were differently associated with individual and team perceived stress, interpersonal coping, and subjective team performance, as well as demographic characteristics. A sample of 416 young French football players (males = 282; females = 134; Mage = 16.2; SDage = 1.2) from 12 elite football training centers participated in this study. Latent profile analysis results yielded three coping profiles allowing players to be grouped according to their preferences for a combined use of certain strategies (i.e., low copers, high disengaged copers, and high task copers). Results provided further insight into each coping profile membership by indicating the role played by intrapersonal emotional competence and psychological need satisfaction. Finally, differences between coping profiles have been shown in terms of individual perceived stress intensity, interpersonal coping approach, and gender. These findings provide a deeper understanding of adaptive coping profiles within a population of adolescent football players involved in elite training centers. Implications for developing and tailoring psychoeducational interventions for adolescent football players exhibiting a maladaptive coping profile (i.e., disengagement-oriented coping profile) are considered.

Povezanost intenziteta i delovanja predtakmičarske anksioznosti sa učestalošću i efikasnošću prevladavanja

Starting from the importance of competitive anxiety and coping for competitive achievement, this paper examines the relationships between these two groups of variables. The first goal was to determine the intensity and effect of anxiety, the frequency of application and the effectiveness of strategies and dimensions of coping. The second goal was to determine the relationship between the frequency of application and the effectiveness of coping strategies and dimensions. The third goal was to examine possible differences in the frequency of application and in the efficiency of coping dimensions between basketball players who experience anxiety and self-confidence of different degrees and who interpret their effects on performance differently. The sample consisted of 58 highly successful basketball players, who compete within the highest national level (Myear = 15.86; Msp.exp. = 5.85). Respondents completed the following questionnaires: SCAI-2, SCAI-2-d and CICS (with an added scale for coping efficiency). Basketball players experience low anxiety but strong self-confidence. They perceived that anxiety has a slightly negative effect and self-confidence has a positive effect on performance. They most often apply task-oriented coping and evaluate it as the most efficient. The association between frequency and perceived efficacy of coping is positive, ranging from moderate to very strong. Basketball players with a higher degree of cognitive anxiety are more likely to use distraction-oriented coping and disengagement-oriented coping, while those with higher somatic anxiety are more likely to use disengagement-oriented and task-oriented coping. The more pronounced the self-confidence, the more effective is basketball players assess task-oriented coping, and the less effective is disengagement-oriented coping. The obtained results can be used in psychological preparation for the competition.

Incremental intelligence mindset, fear of failure, and academic coping

Guided by the implicit theories of intelligence (ITI) and the cognitive–motivational–relational theory of emotion and coping, the current cross-sectional study aimed to test the effects of students’ incremental view of intelligence (i.e., growth mindset) in coping with academic underachievement and the potential mediating role of the fear of failure (FOF). A total of 444 Chinese undergraduate students, aged 18 to 25 years old ( M = 19.76, SD = 1.48, 53.4% were female), voluntarily completed the paper-and-pencil questionnaire. A partial mediational model showed good fit with the survey data. Growth mindset had a positive direct effect on problem-focused coping (PFC) and a negative effect on FOF. FOF had a positive effect on emotion-focused coping (EFC) but not PFC. The bootstrapping results showed that growth mindset had an indirect negative effect on EFC via FOF. Our findings provide further evidence that ITI can affect different coping styles, specifically in the domain of academic failure. Growth mindset directly promoted remedial coping and prevented disengagement-oriented coping in the context of negative academic outcomes through lessening the fear of subsequent aversive consequences of failure.

Stress appraisals influence athletic performance and psychophysiological response during 16.1 km cycling time trials

ObjectivesWe examined how stress appraisals were associated with emotions, coping behaviours, as well as subjective and objective measures of performance. DesignProspective field- and laboratory-based studies. MethodsIn Study 1, 192 athletes completed process-oriented psychometrics pertaining to the aforementioned constructs throughout a sporting competition. Study 2 utilised an experimental design to assess the causal influence of stress appraisals on performance, cortisol, and psychological variables. Thirty gender-matched athletes were randomly assigned to either a stress appraisal (e.g., challenge, threat, benefit, or harm/loss) or the control group. Participants completed three 16.1 km cycling time trials (TT) on a cycle ergometer, with their appropriate stress appraisal engendered via falsified performance feedback throughout the final TT. Salivary cortisol samples and psychometrics (e.g., appraisals, emotions, and coping) were collected before and after each TT. ResultsThe results of Study 1 revealed a sequential link between challenge stress appraisals and perceived goal attainment via pleasant emotions and task-oriented coping behaviours. Threat stress appraisals inversely related to goal attainment via unpleasant emotions and both distraction- and disengagement-oriented coping. In Study 2, no significant psychophysiological or performance differences were found across genders. The temporal orientation of stress appraisals influenced objective cycling TT performance. Benefit and harm/loss stress appraisals significantly facilitated or inhibited performance, respectively. Cortisol spikes were observed in the stress appraisal group’s threat, challenge, and benefit, with a decline detected within the harm/loss group. Whilst the process of winning is physiologically stressful, the fear of defeat may be more stressful than losing itself. ConclusionStress appraisals influence subjective and objective performance, as well as neuroendocrine and psychological responses to stress.

Upoređivanje stanja anksioznosti i prevladavanja stresa sprintera i trkača na srednje i duge distance

Competitive anxiety and coping with competitive stress determine successful athletic performance in important ways. The first goal of this study was to investigate the intensity and potential differences in state anxiety (somatic and cognitive) and self-confidence between sprinters and middleand long-distance runners, as well as to compare their use of coping strategies and/ or coping dimensions. The second goal was to define which coping strategies runners use most frequently in general. The third aim was to examine if there is a relationship between competitive anxiety and coping dimensions in runners. A sample of 52 runners, 44.2% sprinters and 55.8% long-distance runners, (Mage = 24.25; Msp.exp .= 9.78) completed the SCAI-2 and CICS. Compared to middleand long-distance runners, sprinters scored higher on somatic and cognitive anxiety and lower on self-confidence. In total, runners most frequently use task-oriented coping strategies. There are no differences between sprinters and middleand long-distance runners in coping dimensions and strategies except in mental distraction, which is more frequently used by middleand long-distance runners. Task-oriented coping was positively related to self-confidence and negatively to cognitive anxiety. Disengagement-oriented coping is positively related to both somatic and cognitive anxiety and negatively to self-confidence. The study results highlight the possible directions for further research and provide a basis for several practical recommendations.

Career doubt in a dual-domain model of coping and progress for academic and career goals

University students set career goals during their academic journey in order to facilitate their transition to the labor market. Career goals can nonetheless be accompanied by doubt, even among the most determined students. Little is known, however, about the nomological network of career doubt. Using a dual-domain approach, the purpose of the present study was to test a model that integrated career doubt with the coping and progress made by university students (N = 234) during the simultaneous pursuit of their academic and career goals. Results from structural equation modeling revealed a significant negative total effect for the association between career doubt and career goal progress, and a significant indirect effect for the association between career doubt and both academic and career goal progress through task-oriented coping. Although career doubt was positively and significantly associated with disengagement-oriented coping for academic and career goals, disengagement-oriented coping was not significantly associated with academic and career goal progress. Results should be interpreted as supporting a plausible nomological network in which career doubt operates within a dual-domain model of coping and goal progress. Implications for future research are discussed in light of more sophisticated designs that could provide insight into the factors that facilitate students' transition to the working world.

The detrimental effect of academic procrastination on subsequent grades: the mediating role of coping over and above past achievement and working memory capacity

ABSTRACTBackground: Academic procrastination is common among university students and its effect on their achievement is worrisome. Although procrastination is often depicted as self-regulation failure, research still needs to examine the self-regulatory mechanisms involved in the relationship between procrastination and achievement.Objectives: In this prospective study, we sought to (a) unravel the unique effect of academic procrastination on university grades, (b) examine the mediating role of task-oriented and disengagement-oriented coping as a self-regulatory pathway toward achievement, (c) control for the potential confounding influence of past achievement and working memory capacity.Methods: A sample of 258 university students completed self-report measures of academic procrastination and coping, and performed tests of working memory. Their semester grade point average was collected at the end of the semester.Results: Results of structural equation modeling showed that academic procrastination negatively predicted subsequent academic achievement, even after controlling for high school achievement and working memory capacity. Furthermore, indirect effects revealed that task- and disengagement-oriented coping explained 70% of the total effect.Conclusion: These findings outline that the effect of academic procrastination cannot be reduced to a history of academic difficulties or limited cognitive ability and that coping plays an important role in the procrastination – achievement relationship.

The moderating effect of self-compassion on relationships between performance and subsequent coping and motivation

In this investigation, self-compassion was examined as a potential moderator of relationships between athletes’ subjective appraisals of performance and coping or motivational outcomes after a performance episode. Data were obtained online from competitive swimmers (N = 121, Mage = 15.53, SDage = 2.23). Significant moderation effects were observed in the prediction of post episode task-oriented coping and self-determined motivation. Self-compassion was the only significant predictor of post episode disengagement-oriented coping and trended toward being the only significant predictor of post episode externally-regulated motivation. These findings suggest that there is potential value in developing self-compassion among athletes in performance-based sport.

The prognostic relevance of psychological factors with regard to participation and success in table-tennis

ABSTRACTThis study examined the prognostic relevance of self-determined motivation, coping, burnout, perceived stress and recovery experienced by 159 youth table-tennis players involved in intensive training centers with regard to their participation and success six years later. Results of ANCOVAs showed that players who still practiced at time 2 (T2; six years later; n = 130) reported lower time 1 (T1; while they were involved in intensive training centers) amotivation (large effect), disengagement-oriented coping, sport devaluation and reduced accomplishment (moderate effects) than their counterparts who dropped out at T2 (n = 29). Results of ANCOVAs also showed that international (n = 18) and/or national players (n = 86) at T2 reported significantly lower T1 amotivation (large effect), disengagement-oriented coping and sport devaluation (moderate effects) in comparison to regional (n = 26) players at T2. Finally results of correlational analyses showed that T2 performance and/or six-year performance progress were significantly and weakly correlated with introjected and external regulations, perceived stress and perceived recovery, and significantly and moderately correlated with amotivation, disengagement-oriented coping, sport devaluation, and reduced accomplishment. Overall, this study provided insights into the role played by self-determined motivation, coping, burnout, perceived stress and recovery in the table-tennis players’ dropout and performance level six years later.

The Role of Optimism, Social Constraints, Coping, and Cognitive Processing in Psychosocial Adjustment Among Breast Cancer Survivors.

The social-cognitive processing model suggests that a socially constrained environment may impede adjustment to a chronic illness. The present study primarily investigated the mediating psychological pathways through which social constraints on cancer-related disclosure, low optimism, disengagement-oriented coping, and brooding could be associated with low levels of psychosocial adjustment. One hundred twenty-five female breast cancer survivors participated in a cross-sectional study. Path analysis was used to examine the proposed model. Low optimism, increased social constraints, and higher levels of brooding appeared to be risk factors for poor psychosocial adjustment to breast cancer. Disengagement-oriented coping and brooding partially mediated the relationship between social constraints and adjustment. Brooding totally mediated the relationship between disengagement-oriented coping and adjustment. The current findings provide support for the value of the social-cognitive processing model among breast cancer survivors. The mapping of psychological pathways of adjustment to breast cancer may have useful clinical implications for better adjustment outcomes.

The Mediating Role of Coping between Competitive Anxiety and Sport Commitment in Adolescent Athletes.

Framed in cognitive-motivational-relational theory of emotions (Lazarus, 1999), this study aimed to test how coping mediated the relationship between competitive anxiety and sport commitment in a sample of adolescent athletes. Five-hundred adolescents (M = 16.42; SD = 1.54) participated in our study. Participants completed competitive anxiety, coping, and sport commitment measures. We defined the measurement model using confirmatory factor analysis and exploratory structural equation modeling; and compared two different models of mediation (i.e., total and partial mediation) using structural equation modeling. Results favored partial mediation model where cognitive anxiety factors predicted sport commitment. Results from this model suggest direct and mediated structural relations between concepts. Somatic anxiety had a weak influence on sport commitment (total effects = 0.090 [-.131, .311]). Worry showed a positive influence on sport commitment (total effects = .375 [.262, .486]) through direct and mediated effects. Concentration disruption showed a negative impact on sport commitment (total effects = -.544 [-.724, -.363]) trough mediated effects only, showing a negative path on task-oriented coping and a positive path on disengagement-oriented coping. As a whole, our findings identify task coping efforts undertaken by adolescent athletes as a key element in the relationship between competitive anxiety and sport commitment. These findings provide preliminary evidence for the design of coping interventions in adolescents.

Coping strategies of former prisoners of war mediate the intergenerational transmission of posttraumatic stress symptoms

ABSTRACTObjectives: Certain coping strategies, characterized by emotional coping or disengagement/ avoidance, have been linked to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and PTSD symptoms (PTSS). However, the role of primary trauma victims’ coping strategies in the intergenerational transmission of PTSS is still lacking. This prospective study assessed the mediating role of former prisoners of war’s (ex-POWs) coping strategies in the associations between ex-POWs’ PTSS and their adult offspring’s secondary PTSS in relation to their fathers’ captivity and psychiatric symptomatology.Design: A correlational, prospective study.Method: A sample from the 1973 Yom Kippur War composed of 79 Israeli ex-POW father-offspring dyads completed self-report measures. Fathers were assessed in 2001 and 2008, and their adult offspring participated in 2014.Results: ex-POWs’ problem-focused coping strategies of active coping and planning, as well as disengagement-oriented coping strategies of alcohol and substance use and venting of emotions, were negatively associated with offspring’s PTSS and psychiatric symptomatology. Importantly, ex-POWs’ venting of emotions mediated the link between ex-POWs’ PTSS and their offspring’s secondary PTSS.Conclusions: Ex-POWs with PTSS might expose their offspring to dysregulated mood, behaviors, and cognitions. Special awareness should be given to the venting of emotions coping style as possible mechanism for the intergenerational transmission of captivity-related PTSS.

The independent and interactive effects of the Big-Five personality dimensions upon dispositional coping and coping effectiveness in sport

We examined the independent and interactive effects of the Big-Five personality traits on dispositional coping and coping effectiveness among athletes. Participants were 400 athletes (mean age 22.97, s = 7.00) from the UK. The athletes completed measures of personality, dispositional coping, and coping effectiveness. The Big-Five personality traits independently predicted the use of higher order coping dimensions. Extraversion, agreeableness, and openness positively predicted task-oriented coping. Neuroticism positively predicted distraction-oriented coping, whereas agreeableness, extraversion, and conscientiousness were negative predictors. Both extraversion and neuroticism positively predicted disengagement-oriented coping, whereas agreeableness and conscientiousness were negative predictors. Only neuroticism predicted coping effectiveness, which emerged as a negative predictor. Findings also showed a two-way interaction effect for predicting task-oriented coping between neuroticism and openness, and between extraversion and neuroticism. A further two-way interaction effect for predicting distraction-oriented coping was found between agreeableness and conscientiousness. These findings reinforce the need to investigate not only independent, but also interactive effects of personality dimensions upon sport-related dispositional coping.

Motivation and coping with the stress of assessment: Gender differences in outcomes for university students

The main objectives of the present research were to test a conceptual model linking motivational processes involved in coping with the stress of university assessment, and to examine gender differences in these processes. Self-determined motivation was hypothesized to predict coping strategies and the response to assessment-related stress, and coping was hypothesized to play a considerable role in short- and long-term outcomes of assessment. We examined this model using multiple group path analysis. In Study 1 (N=265), music students’ use of engagement-coping strategies led to stronger musical career intentions, while disengagement-coping strategies led to weaker intentions. In Study 2 (N=340), students’ increased use of engagement coping, and decreased use of disengagement coping strategies led to higher grades, higher positive affect and lower negative affect. In both studies, engagement and disengagement-coping were predicted by autonomous and controlled motivation, respectively. Motivation also indirectly predicted academic outcomes through stress appraisal and coping. While women experienced higher levels of stress, men were more negatively affected by the use of disengagement-oriented coping. Gender differences were also found on the links between engagement-oriented coping and outcomes. These results fill an important gap in the literature regarding gender differences in the outcomes coping in education, as well as contributing to a better understanding of the processes linking motivation, coping and academic outcomes.

A Reciprocal Effects Model of the Temporal Ordering of Coping and Defenses.

This study aimed to examine how coping and defenses are related over time, using a two-wave cross-lagged panel design. Coping and defenses were assessed before and after a sport competition in a sample of 296 competitive athletes. Partial least squares path modeling results showed that (a) pre-competitive mature defenses predicted increases in the use of task-oriented coping during competition; (b) pre-competitive immature defenses predicted an increase in the use of disengagement-oriented coping during competition; and (c) pre-competitive task-oriented coping predicted an increase in the use of immature defenses during competition. Overall, our findings suggest that defenses predict the use of coping and conversely, that coping predicts the use of defenses in psychological adjustment to stressful situations. These findings have important theoretical and practical implications. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Appraisal, coping, emotion, and performance during elite fencing matches: a random coefficient regression model approach.

Understanding more about the stress process is important for the performance of athletes during stressful situations. Grounded in Lazarus's (1991, 1999, 2000) CMRT of emotion, this study tracked longitudinally the relationships between cognitive appraisal, coping, emotions, and performance in nine elite fencers across 14 international matches (representing 619 momentary assessments) using a naturalistic, video-assisted methodology. A series of hierarchical linear modeling analyses were conducted to: (a) explore the relationships between cognitive appraisals (challenge and threat), coping strategies (task- and disengagement oriented coping), emotions (positive and negative) and objective performance; (b) ascertain whether the relationship between appraisal and emotion was mediated by coping; and (c) examine whether the relationship between appraisal and objective performance was mediated by emotion and coping. The results of the random coefficient regression models showed: (a) positive relationships between challenge appraisal, task-oriented coping, positive emotions, and performance, as well as between threat appraisal, disengagement-oriented coping and negative emotions; (b) that disengagement-oriented coping partially mediated the relationship between threat and negative emotions, whereas task-oriented coping partially mediated the relationship between challenge and positive emotions; and (c) that disengagement-oriented coping mediated the relationship between threat and performance, whereas task-oriented coping and positive emotions partially mediated the relationship between challenge and performance. As a whole, this study furthered knowledge during sport performance situations of Lazarus's (1999) claim that these psychological constructs exist within a conceptual unit. Specifically, our findings indicated that the ways these constructs are inter-related influence objective performance within competitive settings.

Committed relationships and enhanced threat levels: Perceptions of coach behavior, the coach–athlete relationship, stress appraisals, and coping among athletes

The purpose of this study was to assess an a priori model that included perceptions of coach behavior, coach–athlete relationship, stress appraisals, and coping. A total of 274 athletes from the United Kingdom, Austalia, and Hong Kong completed relevant measures that assessed each construct. Our results revealed that perceptions of coach behavior were associated with aspects of the coach–athlete relationship and stress appraisals. In particular, closeness was positively associated with challenge appraisals and negatively with threat appraisals. However, commitment was positively associated with threat, indicating that there might be some negative implications of having a highly committed coach–athlete relationship. Further, commitment was also positively associated with disengagement-oriented coping, which has previously been linked to poor performance and lower goal-attainment. Applied practitioners could monitor athlete’s perceptions of the coach–athlete relationship, particularly commitment levels, and provide training in appraising stress and coping to those who also score highly on threat and disengagement-oriented coping, but low on task-oriented coping.

Coping as a building mechanism to explain the unique association of affect and goal motivation with changes in affective states

ABSTRACTBackground and objectives: In this study, we examined the mediating role of university students’ coping strategies in the unique/additive influence of affective states and goal motivation on upward changes in affect during a midterm exam period. Design: Using a short-term prospective design, key assumptions from the self-concordance model and the broaden-and-build theory were drawn upon to determine whether coping strategies are influenced by goal motivation and affective states, while also subsequently influencing short-term changes in affective states during a semester. Method: A sample of 272 students (79% females and 21% males) participated in a study in which they completed questionnaires twice during the semester. Results: Results of structural equation modeling, using a true latent change approach, have generally supported our hypotheses. Positive affective states and autonomous goal motivation prospectively predicted task-oriented coping which, in turn, was associated with increases in positive affect. Negative affective states and controlled goal motivation prospectively predicted disengagement-oriented coping which, in turn, was associated with increases in negative affect. Conclusion: Coping partially mediates the unique association of affect and goal motivation with changes in affective states of university students.

Coping profiles of young Athletes in their everyday life: A three-wave two-month study

Young athletes in intensive training settings are confronted with a series of daily stressors although they have a smaller and less flexible coping repertoire than adults. Moreover, previous studies neglected the multivariate nature of coping. Therefore, the purpose of the current study was to first identify coping profiles of young athletes in response to daily stressors related to their competitive sport involvement. Second, the study examined: (a) if such profiles were similar across the three waves, (b) how many participants belonged to the same profile along the three waves, and (c) whether individuals from distinct profiles differed on burnout, stress, and recovery. One hundred and forty-seven young table-tennis players involved in intensive training settings completed the CICS, RESTQ-Sport, and ABQ three times during a 2-month period. Cluster analyses indicated three similar clusters across the three waves: task-oriented coping, distraction- and disengagement-oriented coping, and low coping profiles. The distribution of athletes significantly varied across waves. Burnout, stress, and recovery significantly differed across the coping profiles. Athletes from the task-oriented coping profile were characterized by the best psychological adjustment (high scores of recovery and low scores of stress and burnout). In contrast, athletes from the distraction- and disengagement-oriented coping profile were characterized by the worst psychological adjustment (high scores of stress and burnout and low scores of recovery). These findings highlighted that the coping profiles allow examining coping within a holistic approach, teasing out the complex associations with key outcomes, such as burnout, stress, and recovery.

Optimism, pessimism, and coping in a dual-domain model of sport and school satisfaction.

Adolescent student-athletes face stress in both academic and sport domains, yet little is known about the processes responsible for explaining satisfaction across domains. We examined a dual-domain model wherein optimism–pessimism are indirectly related to sport and school satisfaction through sport and school coping, respectively. Studentathletes (n 183, Mage 14.88 years) completed measures of optimism, pessimism, school coping, and school satisfaction before a final exam, as well as assessments of sport coping and sport satisfaction before a sport competition. Results of structural equation modeling supported our matching domain hypothesis: optimism was indirectly related to domain satisfaction through domain task-oriented coping, whereas pessimism was indirectly related to domain satisfaction through domain disengagement-oriented coping. No cross-domain effects were found. Optimistic student-athletes experience greater school and sport satisfaction as a consequence of their use of school and sport task-oriented coping strategies, respectively.