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Journal ArticleDOI

Personality and Coping

01 Jan 2010-Annual Review of Psychology (Annual Reviews)-Vol. 61, Iss: 1, pp 679-704
TL;DR: Relations of traits to specific coping responses reveal a more nuanced picture and recommendations are presented for ways future research can expand on the growing understanding of how personality and coping shape adjustment to stress.
Abstract: Personality psychology addresses views of human nature and individual differences. Biological and goal-based views of human nature provide an especially useful basis for construing coping; the five-factor model of traits adds a useful set of individual differences. Coping—responses to adversity and to the distress that results—is categorized in many ways. Meta-analyses link optimism, extraversion, conscientiousness, and openness to more engagement coping; neuroticism to more disengagement coping; and optimism, conscientiousness, and agreeableness to less disengagement coping. Relations of traits to specific coping responses reveal a more nuanced picture. Several moderators of these associations also emerge: age, stressor severity, and temporal proximity between the coping activity and the coping report. Personality and coping play both independent and interactive roles in influencing physical and mental health. Recommendations are presented for ways future research can expand on the growing understanding of how personality and coping shape adjustment to stress.
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A heuristic individual differences framework is proposed and research on three sequential components of flexibility for which propensities and abilities vary are reviewed: sensitivity to context, availability of a diverse repertoire of regulatory strategies, and responsiveness to feedback.
Abstract: People respond to stressful events in different ways, depending on the event and on the regulatory strategies they choose. Coping and emotion regulation theorists have proposed dynamic models in which these two factors, the person and the situation, interact over time to inform adaptation. In practice, however, researchers have tended to assume that particular regulatory strategies are consistently beneficial or maladaptive. We label this assumption the fallacy of uniform efficacy and contrast it with findings from a number of related literatures that have suggested the emergence of a broader but as yet poorly defined construct that we refer to as regulatory flexibility. In this review, we articulate this broader construct and define both its features and limitations. Specifically, we propose a heuristic individual differences framework and review research on three sequential components of flexibility for which propensities and abilities vary: sensitivity to context, availability of a diverse repertoire of regulatory strategies, and responsiveness to feedback. We consider the methodological limitations of research on each component, review questions that future research on flexibility might address, and consider how the components might relate to each other and to broader conceptualizations about stability and change across persons and situations.

910 citations


Cites background from "Personality and Coping"

  • ...recent review, Carver and Connor-Smith (2009) concluded that the relationship between coping...

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  • ...In a more recent review, Carver and Connor-Smith (2010) concluded that the relationship between coping strategy and adjustment is necessarily “moderated by the nature, duration, context, and controllability of the stressor” (p. 694)....

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  • ...…literature on coping, it is well established that in general people can identify the nuances of different types of stressful situations and will tend to use different coping strategies across different types of situations (Carver & Connor-Smith, 2010; Folkman & Moskowitz, 2004; McCrae, 1984)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: 3 studies that explore the role of mindsets in the context of stress suggest that stress mindset is a distinct and meaningful variable in determining the stress response.
Abstract: This article describes 3 studies that explore the role of mindsets in the context of stress. In Study 1, we present data supporting the reliability and validity of an 8-item instrument, the Stress Mindset Measure (SMM), designed to assess the extent to which an individual believes that the effects of stress are either enhancing or debilitating. In Study 2, we demonstrate that stress mindsets can be altered by watching short, multimedia film clips presenting factual information biased toward defining the nature of stress in 1 of 2 ways (stress-is-enhancing vs. stress-is-debilitating). In Study 3, we demonstrate the effect of stress mindset on physiological and behavioral outcomes, showing that a stress-is-enhancing mindset is associated with moderate cortisol reactivity and high desire for feedback under stress. Together, these 3 studies suggest that stress mindset is a distinct and meaningful variable in determining the stress response.

570 citations


Cites background from "Personality and Coping"

  • ...Although there are numerous definitions of stress (e.g., Lazarus & Folkman, 1984), stress can generally be considered as the experience of anticipating or encountering adversity in one’s goalrelated efforts (Carver & Connor-Smith, 2010)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A substantial body of recent research reveals that conscientiousness plays a very significant role in health, with implications across the lifespan, and more caution is warranted before policy makers offer narrow health recommendations based on short-term or correlational findings.
Abstract: A lifespan perspective on personality and health uncovers new causal pathways and provides a deeper, more nuanced approach to interventions. It is unproven that happiness is a direct cause of good health or that negative emotion, worry, and depression are significant direct causes of disease. Instead, depression-related characteristics are likely often reflective of an already-deteriorating trajectory. It is also unproven that challenging work in a demanding environment usually brings long-term health risks; on the contrary, individual strivings for accomplishment and persistent dedication to one's career or community often are associated with sizeable health benefits. Overall, a substantial body of recent research reveals that conscientiousness plays a very significant role in health, with implications across the lifespan. Much more caution is warranted before policy makers offer narrow health recommendations based on short-term or correlational findings. Attention should be shifted to individual trajectories and pathways to health and well-being.

392 citations


Cites background from "Personality and Coping"

  • ...Optimism—characterized by a tendency toward positive expectations for the future and confidence in one’s ability to cope with challenges—has been consistently linked to better health (Boehm & Kubzansky 2012, Carver & Connor-Smith 2010)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
22 Aug 2020-System
TL;DR: The authors examined the stress and coping responses of an international sample of over 600 language teachers who responded to an online survey in April 2020, which measured stressors and 14 coping strategies grouped into two types, approach and avoidant.

383 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This paper reviewed the literature on post-traumatic growth, with a particular focus on how researchers have conceptualized it and the specific methodological issues associated with these conceptualizations, and outlined some ways in which personality science can both be enriched by the study of this phenomenon and inform rigorous research on posttraumatic growth.
Abstract: This target article focuses on the construct of post-traumatic growth—positive psychological change experienced as a result of the struggle with highly challenging life circumstances. Prominent theories of post-traumatic growth define it in terms of personality change, and as a result, this area of research should be of great interest to personality psychologists. Despite this fact, most of the research on this topic has not been sufficiently informed by relevant research in personality psychology, and much of the extant research suffers from significant methodological limitations. We review the literature on post-traumatic growth, with a particular focus on how researchers have conceptualized it and the specific methodological issues associated with these conceptualizations. We outline some ways in which personality science can both be enriched by the study of this phenomenon and inform rigorous research on post-traumatic growth and provide a series of guidelines for future research of post-traumatic growth as positive personality change.

346 citations


Cites background from "Personality and Coping"

  • ...Given that personality consists of action, thoughts and feelings (Carver & Connor-Smith, 2010), a complete assessment of positive personality change following trauma should pay particular attention to patterns of changes in action, as well as thoughts and feelings in relevant domains....

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References
More filters
Book
01 Dec 1969
TL;DR: The concepts of power analysis are discussed in this paper, where Chi-square Tests for Goodness of Fit and Contingency Tables, t-Test for Means, and Sign Test are used.
Abstract: Contents: Prefaces. The Concepts of Power Analysis. The t-Test for Means. The Significance of a Product Moment rs (subscript s). Differences Between Correlation Coefficients. The Test That a Proportion is .50 and the Sign Test. Differences Between Proportions. Chi-Square Tests for Goodness of Fit and Contingency Tables. The Analysis of Variance and Covariance. Multiple Regression and Correlation Analysis. Set Correlation and Multivariate Methods. Some Issues in Power Analysis. Computational Procedures.

115,069 citations


"Personality and Coping" refers background in this paper

  • ...Analyses with specific coping types revealed stronger relationships between personality and coping, with several effects in the range considered moderately strong (Cohen 1988)....

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  • ...Personality assessment has a long history, and there is more consensus about the structure of personality and optimal personality measures than about the structure and assessment of coping....

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  • ...Research should also explore responses to multiple stressors over time to assess how personality influences the capacity to match coping to problems, change strategies that are not helpful, and persist in those that are....

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  • ...As a general rule, mean correlations of 0.10 are considered small effects, 0.30 medium effects, and 0.50 large effects (Cohen 1988)....

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Book
01 Jan 1974
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a detailed theory of psychological stress, building on the concepts of cognitive appraisal and coping, which have become major themes of theory and investigation in psychology.
Abstract: Here is a monumental work that continues in the tradition pioneered by co-author Richard Lazarus in his classic book Psychological Stress and the Coping Process. Dr. Lazarus and his collaborator, Dr. Susan Folkman, present here a detailed theory of psychological stress, building on the concepts of cognitive appraisal and coping which have become major themes of theory and investigation. As an integrative theoretical analysis, this volume pulls together two decades of research and thought on issues in behavioral medicine, emotion, stress management, treatment, and life span development. A selective review of the most pertinent literature is included in each chapter. The total reference listing for the book extends to 60 pages. This work is necessarily multidisciplinary, reflecting the many dimensions of stress-related problems and their situation within a complex social context. While the emphasis is on psychological aspects of stress, the book is oriented towards professionals in various disciplines, as well as advanced students and educated laypersons. The intended audience ranges from psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, nurses, and social workers to sociologists, anthropologists, medical researchers, and physiologists.

37,447 citations


"Personality and Coping" refers background in this paper

  • ...It is often said that stress exists when people confront situations that tax or exceed their ability to manage them (e.g., Lazarus 1966, 1999; Lazarus & Folkman 1984)....

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  • ...The distinction that launched modern examination of coping was that between problem-focused and emotion-focused coping (Lazarus & Folkman 1984)....

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  • ...Also sometimes invoked in the context of stress is the concept of challenge (Lazarus & Folkman 1984)....

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Book
11 Oct 1985
TL;DR: In this paper, models of Human Nature and Casualty are used to model human nature and human health, and a set of self-regulatory mechanisms are proposed. But they do not consider the role of cognitive regulators.
Abstract: 1. Models of Human Nature and Casualty. 2. Observational Learning. 3. Enactive Learning. 4. Social Diffusion and Innovation. 5. Predictive Knowledge and Forethought. 6. Incentive Motivators. 7. Vicarious Motivators. 8. Self-Regulatory Mechanisms. 9. Self-Efficacy. 10. Cognitive Regulators. References. Index.

11,264 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A multidimensional coping inventory to assess the different ways in which people respond to stress was developed and an initial examination of associations between dispositional and situational coping tendencies was allowed.
Abstract: We developed a multidimensional coping inventory to assess the different ways in which people respond to stress. Five scales (of four items each) measure conceptually distinct aspects of problem-focused coping (active coping, planning, suppression of competing activities, restraint coping, seeking of instrumental social support); five scales measure aspects of what might be viewed as emotional-focused coping (seeking of emotional social support, positive reinterpretation, acceptance, denial, turning to religion); and three scales measure coping responses that arguably are less useful (focus on and venting of emotions, behavioral disengagement, mental disengagement). Study 1 reports the development of scale items. Study 2 reports correlations between the various coping scales and several theoretically relevant personality measures in an effort to provide preliminary information about the inventory's convergent and discriminant validity. Study 3 uses the inventory to assess coping responses among a group of undergraduates who were attempting to cope with a specific stressful episode. This study also allowed an initial examination of associations between dispositional and situational coping tendencies.

10,143 citations


"Personality and Coping" refers background or methods in this paper

  • ...Solberg Nes & Segerstrom (2006) focused on optimism as measured by the Life Orientation Test or its revised version (LOT-R) using data from 50 samples of adults and adolescents....

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  • ...The concept of disengagement coping has been extended to include relinquishing goals that are threatened by the stressor (Carver et al. 1989)....

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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A new stress model called the model of conservation of resources is presented, based on the supposition that people strive to retain, project, and build resources and that what is threatening to them is the potential or actual loss of these valued resources.
Abstract: Major perspectives concerning stress are presented with the goal of clarifying the nature of what has proved to be a heuristic but vague construct. Current conceptualizations of stress are challenged as being too phenomenological and ambiguous, and consequently, not given to direct empirical testing. Indeed, it is argued that researchers have tended to avoid the problem of defining stress, choosing to study stress without reference to a clear framework. A new stress model called the model of conservation of resources is presented as an alternative. This resource-oriented model is based on the supposition that people strive to retain, project, and build resources and that what is threatening to them is the potential or actual loss of these valued resources. Implications of the model of conservation of resources for new research directions are discussed.

9,782 citations


"Personality and Coping" refers background in this paper

  • ...A somewhat different view of stress uses an economic metaphor (Hobfoll 1989, 1998), holding that people have resources that they try to protect, defend, and conserve....

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