Men's Coping Strategies Research Articles

Actor–partner effects of coping strategies on emotional exhaustion in dual‐earner couples

AbstractObjectiveThe objective of this study was to investigate the actor and partner effects of personal coping strategies (behavioral and emotional) on emotional exhaustion, directly and indirectly through work–family conflict, in dual‐earner couples, from a gender perspective.BackgroundPrevious studies support the relevance of personal coping strategies as resources that contribute to better performance in work and family roles and the well‐being of couples. However, few studies have incorporated partner effects and a gender perspective into the analysis.MethodUsing a sample of 131 dual‐earner heterosexual couples, actor–partner interdependence models were tested to analyze the impact of personal coping strategies on both couple members' emotional exhaustion.ResultsActor effects show no gender differences, as experienced work–family conflict increases emotional exhaustion in both couple members. However, mixed results were found for the partner effect. Women's coping strategies appeared to be negatively related to men's work–family conflict, which in turn was negatively related to women's emotional exhaustion. However, the reverse pattern was not observed: men's coping strategies were not related to women's conflict, nor did women's conflict levels affect their partners' emotional exhaustion.ConclusionsMen's and women's personal resources do not equally influence the distribution of roles within the couple or the partners' well‐being.ImplicationsAlthough role sharing reduces women's emotional exhaustion, it is essential to promote their careers. Their career advancement is a matter of justice and a source of benefits for their families.

Help-Seeking and Barriers to Service Use amongst Men with Past-Year Suicidal Ideation and not in Contact with Mental Health Services

Objective Men are less likely than women to engage with formal mental health services for suicidality. We describe the sources of support, barriers to service use, and coping strategies of men with past-year suicidal ideation who are not receiving formal mental health services. Method Australian men experiencing past-year suicidal ideation who also did not receive formal mental health services within the past year (n = 176) completed a survey that assessed help-seeking behaviors, coping strategies and styles, use of general services, barriers to service use, and individual-level characteristics. Analyses included descriptive statistics and bivariate analyses. Results The most common type of support was self-help resources, and self-reliance was the most common barrier to formal mental health service use. Most participants had seen a GP for non-mental-health-related reasons in the past year. Men who did not seek any help for their suicidality experienced lower instrumental barriers and perceived need for support, and lower levels of certain coping styles. Limitations included a cross-sectional design and small sample size. Conclusion The current study provides insight into the help-seeking experiences of men with past-year suicidality and not receiving formal mental health services. The findings suggest it may be helpful to improve the linkage between online and informal sources of support and evidence-based interventions. HIGHLIGHTS Online self-help, friends, and partners were the most commonly used sources of help. A subset of men (42%) with lower perceived need for help did not seek any support. Despite no past-year formal mental health service use, 80% of the men had seen a GP.

Depression and the gender gap in political interest

It is well-documented that women report less interest in politics than men on average. We argue that depression—and the differential strategies used to cope with its symptoms—contribute to this persistent gender gap in political interest. While women tend to rely on rumination when experiencing depression, there is less agreement on men's coping strategies. Depressive symptoms should thus more greatly reduce political interest among women than among men. We analyze data from the European Social Survey and the German GESIS Panel Study. We find some evidence that depressive symptoms, even those that are sub-clinical and short-lived, reduce political interest among women, but have little or no effect on the political interest of men. These findings have implications for political and gender equality, especially with the rising prevalence of depression around the world, and contribute to our understanding of the impact of depression on political engagement.

Gender Features of Coping Strategies in Men and Women

The effectiveness of coping behavior depends not only on a successful strategy but also on the individual characteristics of a person. Age, sex, intelligence, social status, gender identity - all these influence the coping ability and resilience of an individual. In mo- dern psychological research, there is some confusion between the concepts of ‘sex’ and ‘gender.’ Despite numerous studies on male and female coping strategies, gender differences in coping behavior are still poorly understood. The purpose of the study was to analyze gender-specific coping strategies of middle-aged men and women. Russian men and women (N = 286) were divided by gender (masculine, androgynous, feminine). The research was made using The Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BPRT) and Lazarus Folkman’s Test Ways of Coping Questionnaire (WCQ). This study employed a cross-sectional design. Differences among the groups were assessed using the Kruskal - Wallis H test, Mann - Whitney U test and Student t-test. The specificity of coping behavior was found to be determined by the gender identity of the study participants. The results of the present study support the gender differences hypothesis, since people with differences in biological sexual identity (male and female) use gender-specific coping strategies (masculine, feminine, or androgynous) if their gender orientations are the same. The research of masculinity, androgyny and femininity can become an important step in the long-term study of coping behavior and the basis for a better understanding of the dynamics of human behavior in a stressful situation.

How Do Trafficking Survivors Cope? Identifying the General and Spiritual Coping Strategies of Men Trafficked into the United States

This study used a mixed method, convergent parallel design to identify the coping strategies—both general and spiritual—used by men who were internationally trafficked. A hybrid purposive/snowball sampling method was used to recruit participants. This procedure yielded a sample of twenty-one men who were trafficked into the United States from Asia and Latin America. Analyses of the survey data revealed the most prominently cited sources of coping were, in decreasing order: spirituality, work, and family. Roughly three-quarters of the sample (76%, n = 16) reported using spiritual coping strategies, of which the most common were: prayer, God, and church. Among those who used spiritual strategies, a plurality reported that the strategies were the most important factor that kept them going. The results have important implications for those who work with trafficked men. Understanding common coping strategies equips practitioners with the knowledge to assess, identify, and operationalize potential assets that may help survivors deal with presently experienced challenges. Future researchers might examine similarities and differences between men and women’s coping strategies to better understand the unique approaches used by both genders to deal with the experience of being trafficked.

EMOTIONS AND COPING STRATEGIES OF MEN TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC IN BRAZIL

ABSTRACT Objective: to analyze the emotions and coping strategies of men living in Brazil to the Covid-19 pandemic. Method: a qualitative socio-historical study, carried out with 200 men residing in Brazil. A semi-structured form was applied, made available on an online platform between March and May 2020. The data were analyzed by the Collective Subject Discourse method and sustained in the theoretical reference of Coping. Results: the strategies most used by the men were the following: compliance with preventive measures, strengthening of family/social ties, promotion of psychological well-being, self-care, emotional suppression, externalization of negative feelings, emotional control, positive reassessment, intellectual investment/professional qualification, maintenance of daily routines, adaptation to home office work, physical activity, control of marital conflicts, acceptance, and strengthening of belief and faith. Conclusion: the coping strategies adopted by the men are focused on following a pandemic coping protocol, and on the meaning and channeling of emotion and sense.

Men's knowledge of male infertility and the possibilities for supporting therapy: risk factors and individual responses

In recent decades, the incidence of male infertility has been increasing continuously both worldwide and in Hungary and is becoming a more and more central issue. Millions of men at the reproductive age are affected by male infertility. In addition to the known organic reasons, many life-style and environmental factors can be expected to contribute to this. The biopsychosocial theoretical model of infertility allows us to interpret the lack of fertility not only from the medical point of view, but also as a psychosocial phenomenon. Men's coping strategies, health information seeking habits, and knowledge of infertility are similar to women's, but there are several different points in their responses given to the problem. So medical, nursing and other health professionals dealing with infertile male patients should devote special and high attention to patients' conducting and paramedical counselling as supportive therapy. Within the framework of this - besides giving information - the individual support contributes to the elaboration of information, arising effects and experiences, furthermore to the developement of adaptive coping strategies for stress, and to the modification of direct or indirect changes in health behavior affecting reproductive health during the treatment period. Orv Hetil. 2018; 159(31): 1262-1268.

Самосохранительное поведение, качество жизни и предпочитаемые копинг-стратегии мужчин и женщин в период ранней взрослости

Самосохранительное поведение, качество жизни и предпочитаемые копинг-стратегии мужчин и женщин в период ранней взрослости

Mindfulness for men with pregnant partners: An integrative literature review (Part two)

Background Both men and women can experience depressive or anxious episodes when transitioning to parenthood. Mindfulness interventions are one way to teach men coping strategies to manage these feelings. Aim This integrative review examined original research, evaluating mindfulness as an intervention for men during the perinatal period. Methods A comprehensive search resulted in 157 articles. After applying defined inclusion and exclusion criteria, 2 original research papers remained. Thematic analysis identified five themes, the first three of which were discussed in Part I of this article. Findings Mindfulness based stress reduction strategies for men have been shown to be effective across a range of health issues, although there is little research during the perinatal period. Research suggests that men engaged in mindfulness based stress reduction in the perinatal period experienced better regulation of emotions and stress, and felt more present for their pregnant partners. Conclusions To improve men's wellbeing, innovative ways of providing perinatal mindfulness based stress reduction are needed. New or adapted mindfulness based stress reduction programmes are needed to improve men's awareness, empathy, self-esteem and psychological wellbeing to better support their pregnant partners.

ZDOLNOŚCI EMOCJONALNE KOBIET I MĘŻCZYZN A STOSOWANE STRATEGIE RADZENIA SOBIE ZE STRESEM

W niniejszym badaniu poszukiwano związku między dwiema zdolnościami emocjonalnymi (rozpoznawaniem i rozumieniem emocji) a strategiami radzenia sobie ze stresem, stosowanymi przez kobiety i mężczyzn. Analizy przeprowadzono na grupie 228 osób dorosłych (109 kobiet i 119 mężczyzn) w wieku 18–58 lat (Mwieku = 27,46 lat). Strategie radzenia sobie ze stresem mierzono kwestionariuszem COPE, do pomiaru zdolności emocjonalnych wykorzystano natomiast testy SIE-T i TRE. Uzyskane wyniki wskazały na istnienie różnic międzypłciowych w zakresie zdolno- ści rozumienia emocji i niektórych strategii radzenia sobie ze stresem. Zaobserwowano również różnice międzypłciowe w zakresie związków między zdolnościami emocjonalnymi a strategiami radzenia sobie ze stresem. Wynik ten może sugerować, że zdolności emocjonalne odgrywają odmienną rolę w radzeniu sobie ze stresem przez kobiety i mężczyzn.

Identifying different typologies of experiences and coping strategies in men with rheumatoid arthritis: a Q-methodology study

ObjectiveTo identify typologies of experiences and coping strategies of men with rheumatoid arthritis (RA).DesignQ-methodology (a qualitative and quantitative approach to grouping people according to their subjective opinion). Men with RA...

Money or Attention? Sex Differences in Reactions to Social Exclusion

We examined differences in the ways in which men and women perceive and react to social exclusion. Men typically experience agentic-type threats in a social exclusion context and are motivated to improve their agentic belief in themselves, whereas women experience communal-type threats and pay greater attention to others. In this study, we employed the pursuit of money as an agentic form of compensation and pursuit of attention as a communal form of compensation. In 2 experiments with high school students as participants (N = 103 and 126, respectively), we found that social exclusion increases the preference of men for a high salary and the preference of women for conspicuous products, and that self-focus mediates these effects. We have contributed to the literature by exploring the different coping strategies of men and women who face social exclusion.

Australian men with cancer practice complementary therapies (CTs) as a coping strategy.

The aim of this study was to explore how and why Australian men with cancer practice complementary therapies (CTs) and how their significant others (SOs) contribute to the regular uptake of CTs. This qualitative study employed semi-structured interviews with 26 male cancer patients and 24 SOs. Participants were purposefully sampled from a preceding Australian survey investigating the use of CTs in men with cancer (94% response rate and 86% consent rate for follow-up interview). Interviews were conducted in a metropolitan location, and the 43 interview transcripts were analyzed thematically. Three core themes were identified: men used CTs as (a) problem-focused coping (e.g., diet modification), (b) emotion-focused coping (e.g., meditation), and (c) meaning-based coping (e.g., prayer). Practicing CTs helped men to cope with physical, emotional, and spiritual concerns, although some men spoke of difficulties with practicing meditation to regulate their emotions. SOs were supportive of men's coping strategies but were only rarely involved in men's emotion-focused coping. Complementary therapies have the potential to facilitate coping with cancer, independent of any measurable physiological benefit. Our findings suggest that when clinicians engage in conversations about CTs use, they should consider the type of coping strategy employed by their patient. Such information may enhance the efficacy of some interventions (e.g., meditation) and also provide for an opportunity to discuss patients' expectations concerning CTs.

A longitudinal study of coping strategies in men receiving radiotherapy and neo‐adjuvant androgen deprivation for prostate cancer: a quantitative and qualitative study

This paper reports a study on how men cope with the side-effects of radiotherapy and neo-adjuvant androgen deprivation for prostate cancer up to 1year after treatment. With early detection and improved treatments, prostate cancer survivors are living longer with the disease and the side-effects of treatment. How they cope affects their long-term physical and mental health. A prospective, longitudinal, exploratory design using both qualitative and quantitative methods was used in this study. Between September 2006-September 2007 149 men who were about to undergo radical radiotherapy ± androgen deprivation for localized prostate cancer in Northern Ireland were recruited to the study. They completed the Brief Cope scale at four time-points. Acceptance, positive reframing, emotional support, planning and, just getting on with it, were the most common ways of coping. Fewer men used coping strategies less at 6months and 1year after radiotherapy in comparison to pre-treatment and 4-6weeks after radiotherapy. Interviews with these men demonstrated that men adapted to a new norm, with the support of their wives/partners and did not readily seek professional help. A minority of men used alcohol, behavioural disengagement and self blame as ways of coping. Men used a variety of ways of coping to help them deal with radiotherapy and neo-adjuvant androgen deprivation for up to 12months after radiotherapy. Interventions need to be developed to take account of the specific needs of partners of men with prostate cancer and single men who have prostate cancer.

Marital benefit and coping strategies in men and women undergoing unsuccessful fertility treatments over a 5-year period

To assess the relationship between infertility, marital benefit, and coping in a sample of men and women undergoing unsuccessful fertility treatments. Prospective longitudinal cohort design using multilevel modeling. Danish public and private hospitals (n = 5) specializing in treating fertility patients. Participants were Danish men and women about to start a cycle of medically assisted reproduction treatment who were followed for a 5-year period of unsuccessful treatments. None. The Copenhagen Multicenter Psychosocial Infertility research program Coping Strategy Scales and Marital Benefit Measure. Compared with men, a greater percentage of women reported high levels of marital benefit. For active-avoidance coping, there was a significant partner effect by gender interaction. Meaning-based strategies increased between 1 and 5 years for men and women. The use of meaning-based coping had a significant positive actor effect with marital benefit for both men and women. Approximately one-third of participants undergoing unsuccessful fertility treatments reported high marital benefit as a positive consequence of the infertility experience. Partner effects for men and women related to active-avoidance coping may be related to the degree of emotional support that each spouse can offer the other, whereas differences in meaning-based coping indicate a possible timing effect related to gender.

Late-life depression and coping strategies in men

Late-life depression and coping strategies in men

Coping strategies in men and women with type 2 diabetes in Swedish primary care

Based on findings regarding gender differences in the experience and complications of diabetes, we studied coping strategies in men and women with type 2 diabetes in relation to their demographic, medical, socio-economic and psychosocial situation. Altogether 232 Swedish-born type 2 diabetes patients aged 35–64 years at four primary health care centres in Stockholm County were studied, 121 men and 111 women. Coping strategies were assessed by the General Coping Questionnaire (GCG), which describes five orientations dichotomised into positive and negative opposites: self-trust/fatalism; problem focusing/resignation; cognitive revaluation/protest; social trust/isolation; and minimisation/intrusion. Socio-economic and medical data were taken both from a questionnaire and from medical records. Gender differences for the coping strategies resignation, protest and isolation were found ( p < 0.05), with higher scores for women. The most important medical factor associated with coping strategies was HbA1c. Other significant factors detected in the multivariate analyses were psychiatric disorder, cohabitation and daily smoking. Thus, coping strategies and gender are important factors that should be addressed more in diabetes health care.

The Influence of Relational Factors on Men's Adjustment to Their Partners' Newly-Diagnosed Breast Cancer

Steadily rising breast cancer rates in America's women are forcing more men to confront challenges of living with a partner afflicted with this disease. This study assesses teh impact of mutual emotional support as perceived by male partners on their adjustment to the diagnosis and the illness and on interactions between their perceied emotional support nd their coping methods. Seventy-one male partners of newly-diagnosed breast cancer patients completed standardized instruments that measured emotional wellbeing, illness intrusiveness, emotional support, dyadic coping styles and demographic factors. Regression analysis revealed significant associations between perceived emotional support and men's coping strategies, and between coping styles and illness intrusiveness. Also, a history of depression predisposes men to poorer adjustment and affects their coping patterns. Findings suggest that as the health care system continues to relocate burden of care to partners and families, social workers must increase their understanding of how to effectively assist patients' partners. This study emphasizes the need to work with patients and partners to develop positive coping strategies as a couple.

Male Fertility: Endocrine Stress Parameters and Coping

Introduction: The impact of psychosocial stress on infertility has not yet been entirely understood in andrology. The objective of this study is to compare endocrine stress parameter levels and coping styles in andrological patients with normal and impaired semen characteristics. Besides, the study is to verify, if sperm quality and coping styles differ between subgroups with normozoospermia and high vs. normal stress parameter levels. Patients and Methods: In a prospective study, 14 patients with impaired fertility (oligo-, crypto- and azoospermia) and 34 patients with normozoospermia underwent standardized diagnostic stress testing comprising masturbation for semen analysis, venous blood testing, the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and the Coping with Stress Questionnaire (SVF 120) as well as spermiogram and hormon analyses. Results: As compared to men with normal semen characteristics, men with impaired fertility showed significantly better coping with stress in the SVF 120, yielding higher scores in compensation, relaxation and diversion. Furthermore, among patients with normozoospermia higher values in the stress parameters prolactin, cortisol, FSH and neopterin (an immunological marker) were associated with subfertility, impairment of motility, hypoosmotic swelling test (HOS), penetration capacity and a significantly higher reaction control in the SVF 120. Conclusions: The results indicate a measurable relationship between high stress parameter levels and subfertility in patients with normozoospermia and quite positive coping strategies in men with impaired fertility.

Interactions between nurses and men admitted with chest pain.

This paper reports on an analysis of the interactions that occurred between nurses and men admitted with acute chest pain. Men admitted to hospital after experiencing chest pain were the focus of a study into men's transition from being well men to ill men. During the study it became apparent that nurses adopted strategies to manage the men through this early acute phase of their illness. Data were collected through fieldwork using participant observation on an acute medical admissions ward and an intensive care unit with dedicated coronary care beds. Twenty-five men were included in the study with 10 followed through to discharge. An interpretive grounded theory was used to direct the data collection and analysis. The men and nurses were seen to be part of a complex interplay, but three main types of interaction were identified: supportive, controlling and educative/informative. Discussions with the men suggests a key factor in the men's experiences was the interactions they had with the nursing and medical staff. Attention should be given to nurses' awareness of men's coping strategies when faced with sudden health change and how their actions impact on their recovery.