In this paper we examine what security is to the individual and how the individual creates and maintains security in their work. The purpose of this paper is to study how the creating of security in working life is performed. We conduct six semi-structured qualitative interviews with permanent employees in the private sector and we encode our material using thematic analysis. We analyze our material and illustrate our problem area on the basis of Anthony Giddens's theory of ontological security and give examples of how security and creating of security is performed at the empirical field with previous studies in the research area. Our survey shows that security for the individual at work seems to be about having continuity in everyday life, financial stability, a permanent employment, a challenging and fun job and a family in good health and good living. Furthermore, the survey shows that the individual creates and maintains security in their work with both practical and mental coping strategies. These are: continuity, codetermination, stable finacial basis, social network, irreplaceability, improve skills and meaningful work. Finally, we conclude that the process of creating security is based on the individual's subjective understanding of job security and that continuity is fundamental for security.

Test taking can produce elevated stress and anxiety, with subsequent negative influences on test performance. This has been a focus of prior research. However, only a few studies have explored how coping strategies and perceived social support affect relationships between academic stress, test anxiety, and test performance particularly in China. Therefore, this study investigated relationships among academic stress, test anxiety, coping strategies, perceived social support and test performance in a Chinese high school sample. Specifically, this study tested the moderating effects of coping strategies and perceived social support on the relationships between academic stress, test anxiety, and test performance. Four hundred and fifty Chinese high school students completed four surveys: 1) Test Anxiety Inventory (TAI; Spielberger et al., 1980) - Chinese Version, 2) Academic Stress Scale (ASS; Kohn & Frazer, 1986)-Chinese Version, 3) Simplified Coping Styles Questionnaire (SCSQ; Xie, 1998), and 4) A revised Chinese version of the Multi-dimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS; Zimet, Dahlem, Zimet, & Farley, 1998). Scores from the pre-National College Entrance Exam (pre-NCEE) were obtained from the school. Hierarchical multiple regressions indicated that academic stress was positively related to students’ test anxiety and negatively related to their academic test performance. Test anxiety had a negative relationship to test performance. While active coping was not found to moderate the relationships among academic stress, test anxiety, and academic performance, perceived parent support and perceived other support moderated the relationships between test anxiety and test performance as well as between academic stress and test anxiety. These moderation effects were in a different direction than predicted as there were stronger relationships between test anxiety and test performance, and between academic stress and test anxiety, when students reported higher levels of perceived parent support or other support. This study contributes to the research literature by exploring the integrative relationships among academic stress, test anxiety, test performance, coping strategies, and perceived social support. Findings of this study and related literature are considered for public policy and the design of training programs aimed at assisting Chinese high school students cope with academic stress and test anxiety.

Utilising an interpretive descriptive approach, this qualitative study explores and identifies how spouses and partners of stroke survivors sustain their own health and wellness. Recent literature has mainly focused on identifying psychological coping strategies thought to assist in adapting to the caring role. As a consequence, there is limited knowledge regarding the experiences of how spouses and partners attend to their own health and well-being. This study aimed to explore how spouses and partners sustain their own health and wellness while supporting a stroke survivor. Purposive and theoretical sampling strategies were used to guide recruitment. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with seven spouses and partners who were living with, and supporting a stroke survivor. A central theme with three sub-themes became apparent when examining spouses and partners’ experiences. The theme of Meeting Needs connects the three sub-themes, in that spouses’ and partners’ health and wellness appeared to be influenced by and intertwined with attending to the stroke survivors’ needs. The context of Being in a Relationship provided a rationale for prioritising the stroke survivors’ needs and was the first sub-theme. Secondly, Living Both Lives explains how spouses/partners were busy thinking and attending primarily to the stroke survivor’s daily requirements whilst also trying to attend their own needs. The third sub-theme, Uncertain Health encompasses how a spouse’s and partner’s well-being is connected to the stroke survivors’ health and their future concerns about being able to provide care if they themselves become sick. Therefore, these circumstances shaped their ability to attend to their own health and well-being. Whilst attending to the stroke survivor was at the forefront of their minds there were some strategies which spouses/partners utilised to support their own health and well-being. These were: creating time and space for themselves; talking with others; and comparing own lives against others who were seen to be worse or better off, in order to support their own emotional well-being. This study found that the participants struggled to prioritise and attend to their own health and well-being, as most of them was busy primarily attending to the stroke survivor’s needs. Overall, results suggest that exploring what spouses/partners think and do within the relationship could be valuable for health practitioners. Given that it is the intimate nature of being in a relationship that is the foundation for spouses/partners supporting the stroke survivor, it could also be important for services and health professionals to consider the well-being and needs of the couple, not just the stroke survivor.

The purpose of the present study was to explore the coping strategies and learning techniques students with reading difficulties/disabilities (e.g., dyslexia) view as effective and commonly use to cope with the demands of postsecondary education. The present study employed a basic qualitative interpretive research design to discover and understand the perspectives and experiences of the students interviewed for this study (Merriam, 1998). Semi-structured interviews were utilized to provide insight into the experiences of these individuals. Analysis of the data generated from these interviews maintained a focus within the theory of resilience. There were three major themes that emerged from the interviews: (1) struggling to learn: recognizing the impact of learning difficulties and/or disabilities; (2) embracing the positives and negatives of a diagnosis; (3) surviving the learning experience: using coping strategies and learning techniques. Despite the adversities the participants within the current study faced, they all reported instances in which they were able to positively adapt and adjust in order to experience success and resilience in their lives. This study concluded with a discussion of the practical implications of the findings, the limitations and strengths of the study, and areas for future research.

The grief experienced by the bereaved next of kin after a sudden death can result in both physiological and psychological outcomes. The nurse is often faced with the acute crisis that may arise. The meeting with dying patients is emotionally stressful for the nurse, who may experience a disbelief in their own capacity. The aim of the study was to highlight the nurse’s experiences of meeting with the next of kin after a sudden death. A literature review based on five studies with qualitative design and four with quantitative design. Searches were made in the databases CINAHL Complete, PubMed and Nursing & Allied Health Source. Coping strategies and the concept of health were used as theoretical frameworks. The results consist of five themes. The nurse’s experienced role in the meeting with next of kin which showed that the majority of the nurses experienced the meeting with the bereaved next of kin as their responsibility. Emotional stress of the meeting was for example helplessness, stress, failure and guilt. Fear of the next of kin’s possible reactions meant the nurses fear for the reaction from the next of kin. The experience of education and lack of knowledge were considered as an important foundation in the meeting with the next of kin, and The experience of lack of resources that showed a lack of resources and guidelines. Stress and other external factors may affect nurses’ health negatively; the use of different coping strategies can assist the nurse in affectively handling such stress. The nurse is required to be in good health to adequately meet the next of kin and their needs. Training in and knowledge of the meeting with the next of kin can contribute positively towards the nurse’s well-being. / Närstående som drabbas av en smärtsam förlust till följd av ett plötsligt dödsfall upplever sorg, vilket kan resultera i både fysiologiska och psykologiska besvär. Sjuksköterskan är ofta den som möter närstående i den akuta krisen som kan uppstå. Sjuksköterskan upplever mötet med döende patienter som emotionellt påfrestande och kan uppleva en misstro på sin kapacitet. Syftet var att belysa sjuksköterskans upplevelser av mötet med närstående vid plötsligt dödsfall. En litteraturöversikt baserad på nio vetenskapliga studier, fem av kvalitativ design och fyra av kvantitativ design. Sökningar gjordes i databaserna CINAHL Complete, PubMed och Nursing & Allied Health Source. Copingstrategier och begreppet hälsa användes som teoretisk utgångspunkt. Resultatet består av fem teman. Sjuksköterskans upplevda roll i mötet med närstående där det framkom att sjuksköterskorna upplevde mötet med de plötsligt sörjande närstående som deras ansvarsområde. Emotionella påfrestningar i mötet som exempelvis var hjälplöshet, stress och skuld. Rädslan för närståendes eventuella reaktioner som innebar en rädsla för reaktionen från de närstående. Upplevelsen av bristande utbildning och kunskap som ansågs vara en viktig grund i mötet med närstående och Upplevelsen av bristande resurser som visade på bristande resurser och riktlinjer. Stress och yttre påfrestningar kan påverka sjuksköterskans hälsa negativt och för att hantera detta kan olika copingstrategier användas. För att sjuksköterskan ska kunna möta de närstående på ett adekvat sätt krävs det att hen upplever hälsa. Utbildning och kunskap om mötet med närstående kan bidra positivt till sjuksköterskans välbefinnande och hälsa.

abstract: This research is about urban homeless people's vulnerability to extreme temperatures and the related socio-spatial dynamics. Specifically, this research investigates heat related coping strategies homeless people use and how the urban environment setting impacts those coping strategies. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with homeless people in Phoenix, Arizona during the summer of 2010. The findings demonstrate that homeless people have a variety of coping strategies and the urban environment setting unjustly impacts those strategies. The results suggest a need for further studies that focus spatial environmental effects on homeless people and other vulnerable populations. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.S. Justice Studies 2011

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-03T16:34:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Sonia Pacheco de Lima Borcsik - UMESP 2006.pdf: 450520 bytes, checksum: 7fd17f5c895c4ffa3c5fb92f906c7010 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-08-17 / The objectives of the present study were, investigate the presence of anxiety in executives after the rupture of a work bond; identify the main coping strategies used by these individuals; and relate the influence of the anxiety level in the coping with the unemployment situation. Participated in the study 35 subjects, 27 men and eight women, 35 to 56 years old, unemployed for over one month and in process of reinsertion in a consulting agency in the city of São Paulo. The Trace-State Anxiety Inventory (IDATE) and the Problem Coping Strategies Scale (EMEP) were used. The data was submitted to the Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS), version 13.0 for Windows. The results indicated that the degree of anxiety found corresponded to the expected average and there was significant positive correlation between Anxiety-Trace and Anxiety-State in the sample studied, which is expected, for the greater the trace, the greater the state will be. As to the coping strategies and level of anxiety, there was negative correlation between Anxiety-State and the use of coping strategies focused on the problem, that is, the greater the anxiety, the lesser oriented to solving problems the individuals were; also there was positive correlation between Anxiety-Trace and the coping strategies focused on the unpleasant emotions, indicating that the greater the anxious state, all the more the individuals used strategies that inhibited skilful and adaptive actions. Coping strategies based on religious practices and fantastical thoughts were also correlated with coping strategies focused on emotion (negative feelings) suggesting a less efficient adaptive character. The correlation between the coping strategies based on emotion and the age of the individuals was negative, especially for the older subjects. There was no positive correlation between unemployment and anxiety, however the longer the length of the unemployment period, the lesser frequent was the adoption of religious practices or fantastical thoughts. The reliability analysis of the instrument for this study, through the Alpha of Cronbach, was 0,79; the analysis of variance (Anova) between the coping factors and the gender indicated a significant difference for the coping factors focused on emotion and religiosity/fantastical thoughts (p < 0,05). It is concluded that the variable anxiety is present when related to the coping strategy focused on emotion and search for religious practices or fantastical thoughts among individuals in an unemployment situation; fact that suggests difficulties in the adaptive equilibrium. Other studies are suggested, with greater samples and which verify with higher precision the relation between length of the unemployment period, gender, age and family group data, among unemployed individuals of managing positions or high executives / O presente estudo teve por objetivos, investigar a presença de ansiedade em executivos após a quebra de vínculo empregatício; identificar as principais estratégias de enfrentamento utilizadas por esses sujeitos; e relacionar a influência do nível de ansiedade no enfrentamento da situação de desemprego. Participaram 35 sujeitos, de 35 a 56 anos, sendo 27 homens e oito mulheres, desempregados há mais de um (1) mês e em processo de recolocação em uma consultoria em São Paulo. Utilizou-se o Inventário de Ansiedade Traço-Estado e a Escala de Modos de Enfrentamento de Problemas EMEP. Os dados foram submetidos ao Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS), versão 13.0 para Windows. Os resultados indicaram que o grau de ansiedade encontrava-se dentro da média esperada e houve correlação positiva significativa entre Ansiedade-Traço e Estado o que é esperado, pois quanto maior o traço ansioso maior será o estado, para essa população. Quanto ao enfrentamento e grau de ansiedade, houve correlação negativa entre ansiedadeestado e o uso de estratégias de enfrentamento focalizadas no problema, ou seja, quanto mais ansiedade, menos os sujeitos orientam-se para resolver problemas; sendo o contrário verdadeiro, pois existiu correlação positiva entre ansiedade-estado e estratégias focalizadas nas emoções desagradáveis, indicando que quanto maior o estado ansioso mais os sujeitos se utilizam estratégias que inibem ações habilidosas e adaptativas. Enfrentamentos baseados em práticas religiosas e pensamentos fantasiosos também estiveram correlacionados com estratégias focalizadas na emoção (sentimentos negativos) podendo sugerir caráter adaptativo menos eficaz. As correlações entre as estratégias de enfrentamento baseadas na emoção e idade mostraram-se negativas, principalmente para sujeitos mais velhos. Não foi encontrada correlação entre desemprego e ansiedade, porém quanto maior tempo de desemprego, menor a utilização de práticas religiosas ou pensamento fantasioso. A análise de confiabilidade do instrumento para esse estudo, através do Alpha de Cronbach foi 0,79; a análise de variância (Anova) entre os fatores de enfrentamento e sexo indicou uma diferença significativa para os fatores de enfrentamento focalizados na emoção e religiosidade/ pensamento fantasioso (p < 0,05). Concluiu-se que a variável ansiedade é presente quando relacionada ao enfrentamento focalizado na emoção e busca de práticas religiosas ou pensamento fantasioso entre sujeitos em situação de desemprego; fato que sugere dificuldades de equilíbrio adaptativo. Sugerem-se outros estudos com amostras maiores e que possam verificar com mais precisão a relação entre tempo de desemprego, sexo, faixa etária e dados do agrupamento familiar entre desempregados de cargos de gerência ou altos executivos

Psychological resilience has been described as a multidimensional, context specific concept, and has been defined in numerous ways that attempt to encapsulate the process by which individuals positively adapt following stress or significant adversity. Research within competitive sport has highlighted several components that influence this process, which include; meta-cognitions and challenge appraisals, coping strategies, personal risk and protective factors, and sociocultural influences (Brown et al., 2015; Galli & Vealey, 2008; Fletcher & Sarkar, 2012; Sarkar & Fletcher, 2014a). Significantly, resilience is described as a dynamic process that is developed through exposure to challenge within the competitive environment (Galli & Vealey, 2008); however, little is known about the nature of psychological resilience at a junior level. The understanding of how resilience is conceptualised at this level is important as this knowledge can help to foster the appropriate protective and promotive factors required to thrive in a competitive junior environment, and best equip athletes for future periods of unrest. The aims of the current research program were to investigate the nature of psychological resilience within a junior sport context, and to explore appropriate measures or methodological approaches by which to achieve this. To achieve these, eight research objectives are presented. To address these objectives, five research investigations were proposed: Study 1. This study aimed to explore the psychometric qualities of the original 25-item CD-RISC (Connor & Davidson, 2003) amongst a sample of junior athletes. Three hundred and forty seven athletes (M age=15.42, SD=1.72) completed the original CD-RISC questionnaire. Participants represented a range of individual and team sports. Internal consistency and factor structure were analysed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and exploratory factor analyses (EFA). CFAs did not support the original 5-factor or unitary factor structure of the 25-item CD-RISC, but did support a unidimensional shortened 10-item measure (Cambell-Sills & Stein, 2007). Subsequently, an EFA and CFA also supported a valid and reliable 2-factor sport specific version of the CD-RISC, which was favoured based on stronger conceptual and theoretical support. This study supports the contention that resilience is not consistent across all populations and context specific measures may be required e.g., sport specific. The emergent 2-factor measurement model suggests an underlying structure of resilience in sport that represents an individual's control through adversity and growth mindset. Study 2. The aim of this study was to explore the nature of resilience within junior sport, with a specific focus on sport type, gender and age differences, and the association between resilience and sensation seeking characteristics. Participants completed the modified version of the CD-RISC, which emerged in the previous study and the Brief Sensation Seeking Scale (BSSS; Hoyle at al., 2002), which measures dispositional risk taking behaviours. The results suggested that male and team athletes have significantly higher resilience scores than their female and individual sport counterparts. In general, protective factors associated with resilience positively relate to sensation seeking characteristics. Specifically, feelings relating to ‘control through adversity' more broadly relate to tendencies leading to greater risk exposure. These findings may suggest that those with a greater perception of control take more calculated risks and set goals that are more challenging. This may offer the opportunity to increase personal mastery through developed interpersonal relations, emotional expression, problem solving skills and coping resources. Nevertheless, our understanding of resilience seems limited by the capacity of a psychometric questionnaire to encapsulate such a complex construct. Study 3. This study aimed to provide a review of the literature concerning resilience in athletes, with a specific focus on identifying the differing methodological approaches to examine the nature of the construct in sport. Fourteen research articles that attempted to directly measure psychological resilience with an athlete sample were identified using both quantitative (n=8) and qualitative (n=6) approaches. Quantitative research has increased conceptual understanding of resilience in sport, relating to its positive associations with similar constructs (e.g., mental toughness), and its moderation qualities. This approach permits statistical analyses to track development, however is unlikely to offer sufficient depth to understanding given the complexities surrounding both the construct of psychological resilience and the nature of an elite sporting environment. Qualitative studies have helped to develop theoretical understanding of psychological resilience amongst athletes through adopting phenomenological methodologies, however, the application of knowledge relies on user generalisability alone and does not offer an objective measure of the construct. The review proposes an exploration of novel methodological approaches that consider the positive elements of both qualitative and quantitative research, but does not consolidate their pitfalls. Study 4. The purpose of this study was to develop a novel tool to measure psychological resilience using a Q-method approach. Specifically, this study aimed to construct a Q-set, by identifying the subjective viewpoints of junior rugby league players, associated with how they would respond to stress or adversity and their perceptions of the resilience process. Twenty-nine junior rugby league players (aged 13-14) were recruited to take part in one of two focus groups designed to generate statements relating to responses to adversity. Thirty statements emerged following inductive thematic analysis, and were retained for the Q-set. There are commonalities between these statements and characteristics of theoretical models and previous research concerning psychological resilience in sport. Study 5. The purpose of this study was to use the Q-set developed in the previous study to explore the nature of psychological resilience in the context of junior Rugby League, using a novel Q-sort method. Sixty junior rugby league players (aged 13-14) completed a standard Q-sort protocol, ranking the previously developed 30-item Q-set using a fixed quasi normal distribution, with anchors of +5 (most like me) to -5 (least like me). PQ Method statistical analysis software was used to analyse the data. Principle component analysis with varimax rotation identified four distinct subgroups that explained 72% of the total variance. These groups were distinguished through patterns relating to: social support, emotional control, unpleasant emotions, personal resources, and cognitive strategies. Shared qualities across the four subgroups were also identified, and included low ratings for evasion strategies, and seeking support, whilst generally high ratings for perseverance. The results from this study showed that junior rugby league players display a range of psychological responses when experiencing adversity and four subgroups with both defining and shared characteristics emerged. This study provides preliminary evidence for the potential usefulness of a Q-method approach for understanding the process of resilience in junior sport. Q-methodology provides an alternative to previous research designs attempting to understand the nature of resilience, and offers an engaging activity to participants, encouraging analytical reflections of their experiences. In summary, the data collected within the current research program has presented an original contribution to knowledge concerning the nature of psychological resilience in junior sport. / The thesis has delivered the first study of its kind, by employing Q-methodology to understand psychological resilience, revealing previously untapped complexities associated with the construct. This approach offers future researchers and practitioners the depth of insight and level of objectivity associated with qualitative and quantitative measures respectively, and recommends this as a viable alternative to psychometric measures of resilience.

The diploma thesis called "Stress among Methamphetamine Users" focuses on the phenomenon of stress in general, but especially on the strategies of coping with stressful situations. These so-called coping strategies are given great attention in contemporary research. The thesis inquires into the development of the Czech drug scene and particularly focuses on methamphetamine as a typical "Czech drug". It describes the period of methamphetamine early expansion in the Czech drug scene, the subsequent period of radical intervention of justice and police into the resulting socially unbearable situation, and the recent respective state of affairs. It also deals with the risks associated with the use of methamphetamine and the various forms of its application. In this respect it logically gives attention to the issue of drug addiction in general and the methamphetamine addiction in particular. An indispensable part of the thesis is a description of the phenomenon of stress according to selected distinguished experts in this area Paulík (2010), Baštecká (2009) a Joshi (2007). The initial discussion of specifically defined and operationalized stress is followed by a discussion of coping in general. First, the emergence of coping is discussed. The theoretical section provides definitions of various scientifically developed coping strategies and deals with the situation around the SVF 78 instrument as well as with the stress coping strategies and the phenomenon of stress itself. The section discusses different coping strategies and identifies their respective pitfalls as well as their influence on people from the holistic model viewpoint. The theoretical section is concluded with the topic of social work with drug addicts and its basic pillars. Describes the aims, research questions and hypotheses of the thesis. Two aims were selected for the thesis: "to find out which coping strategies are used by methamphetamine users" and "to find out how coping strategies change over a prolonged period of methamphetamine use". Three research questions and four associated hypotheses were formulated on the basis of these aims. The hypotheses are operationalized in this chapter. The methodological section discusses the SVF 78 instrument which was used to gather data from drug addicted respondents. The data were gathered in contact centres in South Bohemia via quantitative strategy of data gathering. Next, the research sample consisting of 50 respondents and the ethical aspects of the research are described. An indispensable part of the section is also a description of the statistical methods used for data evaluation. Next chapter, called "Results", describes the research sample with respect to respondents' sex, with the actual ratio being 54 percent of female respondents and 46 percent of male respondents. The respondents' age is described here as well together with an average age, median and standard deviations. Another thing mentioned is respondents' time period of methamphetamine use and their highest achieved education. The discussion section focuses on obtained results and their comparison with actual researches. Despite very interesting results it is necessary to assert that none of the hypotheses was statistically verified. However, analysis of similar studies leads us to a discovery of an analogous problem. The most interesting study in this regards appears to be Konopka et al. (2013) which found no significant differences in coping strategies adopted by benzodiazepine users. In spite of this it is possible to point at frequency differences which were found among methamphetamine users. They were found in particular with respect to the relation between negative coping strategies ratio and period time of methamphetamine use, where negative coping strategies were preferred by respondents using methamphetamine for more than 11 years etc. The concluding section summarizes the research results and reflects on the aims of the thesis.

The aim of the thesis is to specify the stress coping strategies used by people with psychotic disorder and afterwards to find out the way of using these strategies is affected psychiatric rehabilitation. The thesis is structured in two parts. The theoretical part is particularly devoted to the theme of stress, coping strategies, psychotic disorder and psychiatric rehabilitation. In the practical part, there are mediated the answers to hypotheses and research questions with the assistance of the analysis of the data. The methods of research are the questionnaire SVF 78 and the semi-structured interview. The research group was formed by clients of Fokus civil association in South Bohemian region and the leader social worker.