Magister Artium (Psychology) - MA(Psych) / The purpose of the study was to investigate levels of occupational stress experienced by police officers and the strategies used to cope with stress. The study findings are based on a sample of 104 police officers from six police stations within the Cape Town area. The results indicated that participants have been in the police service for an average of 7.72 years, and have worked an average of 4.8 years at their present stations. The majority of participants are between 26-30 years old (31%), male (75%), married(51%), coloured (65%), constables (45%), Afrikaans speaking (47%), and have a matric qualification (70%). The Spielberger Police Stress Survey and the Brief COPE Inventory were used as data collection tools. The findings indicated that police officers were experiencing moderate levels of stress as an outcome of inherent and organisational occupational demands. Secondly, police officers were more likely to use problem-focussed coping strategies to manage occupational stress than maladaptive strategies. The limited use of avoidance coping strategies was surprising, given the elevated prevalence of both physical and psychological disorders within the police context. The results indicated no significant association between levels of distress and avoidance coping strategies. The potential adverse outcomes of severe stress within this group affect society in general more than stress from most other occupational groups. Addressing persistent stress within the organisation is imperative in ensuring a well-functioning police service, and ultimately, a secure and healthy society. / South Africa

During the Second World War, more than 22,000 Japanese Canadians were interned to various locations throughout Canada. While more than 60 years have passed since these events, there remains limited research on the impact that this event had on this group of people. Using McCubbin and Patterson’s (1983) Double ABCX model of family stress and adaptation as a framework, this study used historical narratives of 69 Japanese Canadians to gain insight into a) how Japanese Canadians coped with the challenges associated with their internment, and b) what resources they used during this same time period. The analysis of the coping strategies was done using a modified version of existing measures of coping strategies (Folkman, Lazarus, Dunkel-Schetter, DeLongis, & Gruen, 1986; Suedfeld, Krell, Wiebe, & Steel, 1997), and the analysis of resources was done using an adjusted version of Rettig’s (1995) and Tucker and Rice’s (1985) resource classification list. There were no statistically significant differences between Japanese Canadian men and women in their coping strategy use, but that there were differences between the Issei (first generation) and Nisei (second generation). The Issei used Self Control, Positive Reappraisal, and Denail more than the Nisei, while the Nisei used Seeking Social Support more than the Issei. A strong relationship between coping and resources was found; a relationship that has often been assumed, but never tested. The findings from this study also provided additional support for the usefulness of using both narratives and the Double ABCX model in research. / Arts, Faculty of / Social Work, School of / Graduate

A preliminary review of the literature on coping revealed a gap in the existing knowledge of coping, particularly in the context of an economic downturn. Coping is a process that unfolds in the context of a situation (Lazarus&Folkman, 1984). Somerfield and McCrae (2000:624) appeal to researchers to focus on coping responses to specific situations within a specific context instead of general coping strategies, in this case, coping strategies for leaders during an economic downturn. A grounded theory methodology within a constructivist-interpretive paradigm was employed in this study. The population consisted of individual South African mining leaders employed by three mines. For the purposes of the study, ‘mining leaders’ were defined as members of a mine or mining group’s South African executive committee. Sampling took place on an institutional (mine) level, as well as on an individual (mining leader) level, although the unit of analysis was individual leaders. Mines involved in beneficiating a variety of commodities were selected purposively. Individual leaders (executives) within each company were also selected purposively from the executive committees to form the sample of individual sampling units. Data were obtained through intensive interviews with one pilot respondent and a further seven respondents. Data was analysed using grounded theory methodology, resulting in a conceptual framework of coping strategies for leaders during an economic downturn. The literature was then linked to the conceptual framework developed in this study, showing the relevance of the findings in relation to the existing body of knowledge in organisational behaviour and coping. The findings provided some understanding of how leaders cope during an economic downturn. In addition, this study managed to contribute methodologically to the field of coping research by demonstrating that alternative methodologies (in this case, grounded theory) using narrative approaches (interviews) can uncover ways of coping that are not included in traditional coping inventories. This methodology also allowed for a more in-depth understanding of the phenomenon being studied in the particular context of an economic downturn, in answer to Somerfield and McCrae’s (2000:624) appeal. Recommendations were made to assist leaders to cope better during an economic downturn in turbulent times. Opportunities for further research were also highlighted. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Human Resource Management / unrestricted

Each day in the United States, millions of adult consumers possessing traditional literacy skills below an eighth grade reading level enter a marketplace packed with written messages. This research offers the first in-depth, systematic investigation exploring the impact of low literacy skills within the marketplace and the methods consumers utilize to cope with literacy deficits. Based on the body of literature on stigma theory (Goffman 1963), previous work suggested coping strategies to result as a mechanism to protect the consumers' feelings of self-worth. This research identifies seven categories of coping strategies. The data collected show that coping strategies are not only used to protect the consumers' self-esteem but also to facilitate problem-solving tasks within the marketplace. In several cases, informants reveal their successes in getting marketplace needs met. Thus, a new conceptualization of the consumer literacy construct is offered to consist of traditional literacy skills, coping strategies or surrogate literacy skills, and specialized knowledge of the marketplace environment. Applying Link and Phelan's (2001) reconceptualization of the stigma concept to the data yields a richer understanding of the stigmatization process and consequences within the marketplace. Rather than passively accept the role of low literate, this research offers a perspective of the low literate consumer as an active challenger to the stereotypes that lead to negative evaluations and stigmatization. Implications of these findings for public policymakers, academicians, and members of the business community, as well as future researcher opportunities are discussed. The Association for Consumer Research (http://www.acrweb.org), the Society for Consumer Psychology (http://fisher.osu.edu/mkt/scp/), and the Sheth Foundation provided financial support for this research in the form of dissertation grants. / Ph. D.

This project used data from the Dementia Progression Study, a longitudinal, population-based study based out of Cache County, Utah. Statistical models were used to examine the association between caregiver factors, the care environment, and cognitive outcomes in persons with dementia. Mediational analyses were also used to examine if the care environment, inferred for nutritional status, engagement in physical and cognitively stimulating activities, mediated the relationship between the closeness/caregiver coping strategies and cognition in persons with dementia. Results showed that closer caregiver-care recipient relationships were associated with better nutritional status and more engagement in number of cognitively stimulating activities as well as better cognitive scores (category verbal fluency, short-term auditory memory, auditory working memory, and immediate verbal memory). Coping strategies were not significantly associated with aspects of the care environment but Blames Self coping strategy was associated with better performance on a measure of verbal fluency, whereas Blames Others coping was associated with worse performance in confrontation naming. The care environment was not a mediator between caregiver factors and cognition, though if allowing for a broader criterion of statistical significance (.10), nutritional status mediated the relationship between closeness and the neuropsychological outcome, semantic fluency. The results of this project identify targets of intervention (caregiver-care recipient closeness and caregiver coping strategies) that may positively impact persons with dementia in possibly improving care-recipient outcomes.

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Bakgrund: Bröstcancer är den näst vanligaste cancerformen i världen, minst var tredje person kommer någon gång under sin livstid att drabbas. Att få bröstcancer påverkar inte bara den drabbade utan även de närstående. Personen står inför olika behandlingar som följd av sjukdomen, vilket medför kroppslig och känslomässig påverkan Att som sjuksköterska kunna bemöta och stödja personen är av allra störst vikt för att personen ska kunna återgå till den normala vardagen. Syfte: Att beskriva hanteringen av att leva med bröstcancer utifrån copingstrategier. Metod: En litteraturöversikt har gjorts där tretton kvalitativa artiklar har inkluderats i resultatet. Fribergs trestegsmodell har används för att granska, bearbeta och analysera artiklarna. Resultat: Huvudkategorierna är problemfokuserad coping och emotionell coping. Underkategorierna som bildades var information/kunskap, användning av religiös tro, socialt stöd, aktiviteter, förnekelse/bortträngning och användning av positivt tänkande. Slutsats: Copingstrategier som personerna använde sig av var att söka information på olika sätt. Användning av trosuppfattning var förekommande. Stöd från bland annat närstående och vänner var av betydelse. Får att komma på andra tankar än sjukdomen, höll personerna sig upptagna genom olika aktiviteter. Andra typer av copingstrategier var att distansera sig från miljöer som påminde dem om cancer och att upprätthålla en positiv livssyn genom att ta vara på det som var av betydelse. / Titel: A persons way to manage how to live with breast cancer. Background: Breastcancer is the second most common type of cancer in the world, every third person will be afflicted during their lifetime. To develop cancer does not only affect the afflicted person, but also those who are related.  The person is standing in front of many different treatments as a consequence of the disease, which brings physical and emotional impact. The ability as a nurse to be able to meet and support the person is of the greatest importance so that the person is able to return to the everyday life. Purpose: Describe how to cope when living with breastcancer by using different coping strategies. Method: A literature review has been done where thirten qualitative  articles  have been included in the result. Fribergs threestepmodel has been used to review, process and analyse the articles. Result: The main catergories of coping strategies are problemfocused coping and emotional coping. The subcategories that were formed were; information/knowledge, using religious faith, social support, activities, denial/displacement and the use of positive thinking. Conclusion: People looked up information on how to cope with this disease. The use of different beliefs was a common practice. Support from relatives and friends was important. The ability to think about other things than the disease, kept people busy using different activities. Other types of coping strategies were to distance themselves from environments that reminded them about the cancer and to maintain a positive view on life, by taking care of things that are important.

Some salespeople cope with the chronic stress that accompanies sales jobs better than others. That is, while all salespeople possess some ability for coping with job stress, some coping mechanisms work better than others. Thus, it is critically important to identify the coping mechanismwhich are associated with the most positive organizational outcomes (i.e., higher performance, increased retention). Research on the coping mechanisms of salespeople is in its exploratory stage. Increased knowledge concerning how salespeople cope with chronic job stress would help researchers and managers to clarify why certain job outcomes occur instead of others (i.e., performance, retention, and burnout). This study proposes and tests a set of relationships pertaining to the dimensionality and the outcomes of salespeople's coping styles. The model identifies the antecedents of coping style and proposes three types of coping style salespeople employ to reduce job stress- emotion focused coping (EFC), problemfocused coping (PFC) and action oriented coping (AOC). It also elucidates the outcomes associated with EFC and PFC styles. The empiricalfindingssuggest that among salespeople, those who use PFC possess a more pronounced internal locus of control, perceive higher social support, and project higher continuance commitment, and higher self efficacy than those who use EFC. The findings also suggest that salespeople who use PFC tend to be more satisfied and express greater well being than those who use EFC. Additionally, salespeople who use EFC tend to exhibit greater propensity to burnout and greater tendency to withdraw than those who use PFC. The model holds considerable promise froma managerial standpoint. Because the model partially predicts whether the outcome of a particular coping style will be positive or negative, managers can train their salespeople to cope with job stress more effectively. Additionally, it may be significantly helpful to those who recruit salespeople. Sales recruiters ought to be able to identify applicants with a greater orientation toward an internal locus of control. Internally driven individuals are more likely to use a problem focused coping style. In the context of hiring salespeople, this knowledge can be of crucial importance.

Researchers point to the fact that stress and anxiety among college students are a

The aim of this research was to longitudinally and quantitatively investigate sense of coherence (SOC) and coping strategies as predictors of compassion satisfaction (CS) and compassion fatigue (CF) as measured by secondary traumatic stress (STS) and burnout (BT) during the first six months of training in a professional psychology training programme. Trainee therapists’, “dramatically shift” their “focus of functioning over time” to adorn the personality and self of the therapist (Rønnestad & Skovholt, 2003, p. 28). This adaptive process may initially unravel over six months as trainees balance client and workload stressors (Hill, Sullivan, Knox & Schlosser, 2007; Tryssenaar & Perkins, 2001). However, research on the developmental processes behind the negative (CF) and positive (CS) avenues of therapeutic stressors is lacking in the trainee therapists’ population, especially quantitatively (Schwing, LaFollette, Steinfeldt & Wong, 2010; Thériault, Gazzola & Richardson, 2009). This research aimed to explore these issues in relation to professional development through SOC and coping as predictors of CS and CF over a six month training period. Variables were investigated quantitatively through the Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQOL) (Stamm, 2010) the Brief COPE (BCOPE) (Carver, 1997) and the 29-item self-report Orientation to Life Questionnaire (OLQ) (Antonovsky, 1987). As such, the primary focus of this research was on how SOC and coping strategies were utilised by trainee therapists as process variables in predicting the positive (CS) and negative (CF) avenues of therapeutic work over a six month period of psychotherapy training. Findings suggested that, at the beginning of training, sense of coherence was directly associated with the core outcome variables (CS and CF (as measured by STS and BT). When trainee therapists started seeing clients two months later, the effect of SOC was mediated by coping. At the end of training, only coping was directly associated with outcome variables as the effect of SOC on CS and CF disappeared. These implications are further discussed in the research.