This research investigated the main sources of occupational stress that tertiary English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers experience in the United Arab Emirates. A secondary focus was to identify the coping strategies used by EFL teachers who exhibit low levels of stress, and what types of support were needed by EFL teachers who exhibited moderate to high levels of stress. While theories abound in the literature on the reasons for stress and its consequences for teachers, little is known about the role of coping strategies and their specific usefulness in eradicating stress. Given the nature of the research questions, an interpretivist mixed methods approach was deemed appropriate. Data collection methods included a pre-tested online survey followed by 26 semi-structured interviews and a Likert-style questionnaire which were used to gain an in-depth understanding of the quantitative aspects of stress levels. Qualitative, semi-structured interviews were used to examine the coping strategies of 113 self-identified EFL teachers with low stress levels. They were analysed through theme analysis and triangulated with other data to increase the robustness of the results. The sources of teacher stress derived from the analysis are ranked according to the 20 cited as most significant by the participants. They are discussed in detail under the headings of stressors related to classroom teaching, administration leadership style, professional issues and their own assessment as teachers. The strategies teachers use to cope with these stresses are varied and range from activities to attitudes. Key recommendations for the teaching faculty centre on general health and well-being, and overall workplace focus. Clearly, EFL teachers suffering from workplace stress must take care of themselves physically, psychologically and emotionally. Yet teachers in the UAE also expressed a desire for administrators who practice more democratic leadership styles, and acknowledged that the attitudes of their students toward learning English had a considerable impact on their own practices. Further inquiry is recommended into a more complete examination of teacher stressors and their relationship to cultural factors, specifically two of the cultural dimensions found in the UAE (power distance and uncertainty avoidance), which were found to be particularly relevant to stressors in the category of leadership style and practices.

The diploma thesis concerns the link between coping and attachment. The primary aim is to discover and define how children cope in respect to specific type of attachment. Research sample includes children at the age of 11-12. Research methodologies include qualitive field research. The data were collected by a questionnaire (Experience in Close Relatioship) for purpose to meassure attachment. Research was then accompanied by semi-structured interviews with children, which based on theories of Lazarus and Folkman (1987) and motivational theory (Skinner and Wellborn, 1994). The findings show that in this research children with secure attachment cope differently from children with other types of attachment. The two groups of children vary in their reactions of stress, how they experience stressful encounters, in their appraisal of stresfull encounters and a purpose of social support. KEYWORDS Stress, coping strategies, attachment, stress reactions, emotional regulation

<p>Animals show a great variety in physiological and behavioural responses to stressors. These responses are often bimodally distributed within populations and show consistency on an individual level over time and across situations, which in terrestrial vertebrates have been identified as proactive and reactive stress coping strategies. Proactive animals show lower cortisol responses, higher sympathetic activation and brain serotonergic activity compared to reactive animals. Behaviourally, proactive animals are more aggressive, more active in avoiding stressors, they form routines and show fewer cases of conditioned immobility compared to reactive animals. Our aim has been to reveal if such stress coping strategies exist in fish. Our results show that rainbow trout with high (HR) or low (LR) cortisol responses to stressors differs in sympathetic activation and brain serotonin turnover in the same manner as proactive and reactive mammals. HR fish showed less locomotor activity when reared in large groups (30 individuals) compared to LR fish. When reared in isolation there were no differences between HR and LR fish when exposed to stressors within a familiar environment. The adaption of a proactive coping style among reactive coping individuals when they are challenged within a familiar environment has previously been shown to be distinction between proactive and reactive coping mammals. However, when they were transferred to unfamiliar environments a behavioural difference between the two lines was observed indicating different stress coping strategies akin to those described in mammals. Finally, we observed a consistency over time in the cortisol response of an unselected line of rainbow trout. Fish from this line also demonstrated a correlation between behavioural responses to different stressors. However, there was no apparent connection between these behavioural responses and the cortisol response. Overall, the results of this thesis have strengthened the hypothesis that different stress coping strategies exist in teleost fish.</p>

The neuropeptides arginine-vasotocin (AVT) and corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) are involved in the hypothalamic-pituitary-interrenal (HPI) axis. During stress, the HPI axis is activated and cortisol is released into the blood. In addition to their role in the HPI axis, AVT and CRH also have behavioural effects. The roles of AVT and CRH in stress responses and agonistic behaviour were studied in this thesis, using two different models. In the first model, two strains of rainbow trout (Onchorhynchus mykiss) divergent in stress-induced release of cortisol were investigated. This was done by observing behaviour and stress responses under different conditions. These strains were found to have divergent stress coping strategies based on the observed behaviour and levels of plasma cortisol. This divergence in behaviour could be associated with the CRH system, since the mRNA levels of CRH differed between the strains during stress. However, no differences between strains were observed in AVT or its receptor expressions. In the second model, non-selected rainbow trout were paired and the effect of intracerebroventricular (icv) injections of an active substance (AVT, CRH or the CRH related peptide Urotensin-I (UI)) on fights for dominance was investigated. One fish of the pair received the active substance icv and the other received saline icv. Fish receiving AVT became subordinate in accordance with the suggestion that AVT attenuates aggression in territorial vertebrates. Fish receiving CRH became subordinate whereas UI showed no effect on fights for dominance. Further, both CRH and UI induced an anxiety-related behaviour similar to non-ambulatory motor activity in rats. In addition, CRH appeared to affect the dopaminergic and serotonergic systems. In this thesis, it is suggested that CRH is involved in the behavioural modulation of the stress coping strategies in teleost fish. Further, AVT and CRH seem to act inhibitory on aggressive behaviour.

Mainland China has undergone drastic social and economic changes in the last century. Rapid social changes often transform individual values and family structures, which directly affect the personality development process and life quality of human beings. The review of English and Chinese-language publications will enhance the readers¡¯ understanding of the Mainland Chinese personality features, coping resources and social changes. The research assessed the impact of social changes on the patterns of personality traits, stress coping resources, and life satisfaction of 2359 people in Mainland China. Participants completed three surveys: 1) the Coping Resources Inventory for Stress (CRIS) (Matheny, Curlette, Aycock, Pugh, & Taylor, 1987), 2) Satisfaction with Life Scale (Diener, Emmons, Larson, & Griffin, 1985), and 3) Basic Adlerian Scales of Interpersonal Success-Adult Inventory (Wheeler, Kern, & Curlette, 1995). Pearson Correlations, Univariate analysis of variance, Multivariate analysis of variance, and Multiple regression analyses were used to examine the relationship between personality types, stress coping resources, and life satisfaction for three generations. Income and gender factors were considered in analysis. The three generations do not have significant difference in personality as measured by BASIS-A. Females scored higher than males on Entitlement, Financial Freedom, and Satisfaction with Life. High income group scored significantly higher than middle and low income groups on Belonging-Social Interest, Softness, Taking Charge, and Wanting Recognition, Self Disclosure, Social Support, Financial Freedom, Physical Health, and Physical Fitness. Old generation scored significantly higher than the middle and young generations on Structuring and Satisfaction with Life. Old generation with low income scored significantly higher on Satisfaction with Life than young generation with high income. Within the young generation, middle income group perceived more Financial Freedom and Satisfaction with Life than the high and low income groups. Females with high income perceived less Physical Fitness than females with low and medium income. Entitlement, Financial Freedom, Coping Resource Effectiveness, age, and Belonging-Social Interest are found to be predictors of Satisfaction with Life among Chinese people. Findings of this study have important implications for the design of training programs aimed at assisting Chinese individuals and families to cope more healthfully with distressing circumstances and events. The results should also be useful in developing cross-cultural mental health tests.

The experience of having a sibling with a mental illness affects well siblings in a myriad of ways (Marsh, 1998). In the present paper the term well siblings refers to those individuals who have a sibling with a mental illness but who do not have a mental illness themselves. They face unique stressors due to disruptions in the sibling relationship and in the family (Corrigan & Miller, 2004). The stressors commonly experienced by well siblings include stigma, objective and subjective burden, intense and conflicting emotions, disruptions in family of origin, interpersonal and intrapersonal difficulties, difficulties with the mental health system, and over reliance on maladaptive stress coping resources (Greenberg, Kim, & Greenley, 1997; Lukens, Thorning, & Lohrer, 2004; Marsh, 1998; Marsh & Dickens, 1997b; Riebschleger, 1991). Research describing disruptions in family of origin suggests that well siblings also are experiencing emotional neglect (Lukens et al.; Marsh; Marsh & Dickens). This paper presents a synthesis of literature on the stressors well siblings experience and their attempts at coping with stress. For this study, 133 participants completed 3 instruments: (a) demographics questionnaire, (b) the Coping Resources Inventory for Stress (Matheny, Curlette, Aycock, Pugh, & Taylor, 1987), a measure of perceived stress coping resources, and (c), the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (Bernstein & Fink, 1998), which includes an emotional neglect scale. Participants with siblings with a mental illness were compared with participants whose siblings do not have a mental illness. Results indicate significant relationships between well siblings and emotional neglect and between emotional neglect and effective stress coping. However no significant relationship was observed between well siblings and effective stress coping. Therefore, having a sibling with a mental illness seems a risk factor for emotional neglect, but is not itself a risk factor for poor stress coping. The present study suggests that it is emotional neglect which is a risk factor for poor stress coping. The clinical implications of these results are discussed as well as the research implications and limitations of the study.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the usefulness of a 20-minute brief mindfulness meditation in positively affecting mood and attention. Its effects were compared with the effects from a period of distraction and a control condition. The sample consisted of 63 veterans with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Pre-post test of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule were used to assess levels of state anxiety and mood. The Stroop Task was employed as a measure of selective attention. A one-way analysis of variance and split-plot analysis of variance were conducted. To control high comorbidity within this sample, sub-analyses were conducted excluding participants with other psychological or physical conditions. The results revealed that meditators without sleep problems indicated greater selective attention levels. A negative mood decrease was found in all participants regardless of the intervention group assignment. Implications for research and practice were discussed.

Animals show a great variety in physiological and behavioural responses to stressors. These responses are often bimodally distributed within populations and show consistency on an individual level over time and across situations, which in terrestrial vertebrates have been identified as proactive and reactive stress coping strategies. Proactive animals show lower cortisol responses, higher sympathetic activation and brain serotonergic activity compared to reactive animals. Behaviourally, proactive animals are more aggressive, more active in avoiding stressors, they form routines and show fewer cases of conditioned immobility compared to reactive animals. Our aim has been to reveal if such stress coping strategies exist in fish. Our results show that rainbow trout with high (HR) or low (LR) cortisol responses to stressors differs in sympathetic activation and brain serotonin turnover in the same manner as proactive and reactive mammals. HR fish showed less locomotor activity when reared in large groups (30 individuals) compared to LR fish. When reared in isolation there were no differences between HR and LR fish when exposed to stressors within a familiar environment. The adaption of a proactive coping style among reactive coping individuals when they are challenged within a familiar environment has previously been shown to be distinction between proactive and reactive coping mammals. However, when they were transferred to unfamiliar environments a behavioural difference between the two lines was observed indicating different stress coping strategies akin to those described in mammals. Finally, we observed a consistency over time in the cortisol response of an unselected line of rainbow trout. Fish from this line also demonstrated a correlation between behavioural responses to different stressors. However, there was no apparent connection between these behavioural responses and the cortisol response. Overall, the results of this thesis have strengthened the hypothesis that different stress coping strategies exist in teleost fish.

The aim of the present study was to examine the predictive values of sociodemographic variables, parental variables (parental stress, family functioning, parental adjustment, coping methods), and child variables (coping methods, self concept) for the adjustment of children with spastic cerebral palsy. Transactional stress and coping model was used as the conceptual framework for the study. The sample of the study was composed of 80 children with spastic cerebral palsy and one of their parents. Hierarchical regression analysis was conducted to test the child adjustment by using child gender, parent education, parental stress, family functioning, parental adjustment, parental coping methods, child coping methods, and child self concept as independent variables. Results revealed that parentalstress, parents&rsquo / problem solving/optimistic coping and fatalistic coping predicted the adjustment of children with spastic CP. However, parental adjustment, family functioning, child coping and child self concept were not significantly predicting of child adjustment. The findings, strengths, limitations as well as the implications of the findings were discussed.

Tyrimo tikslas – nustatyti ir išnagrinėti skirtingo mokymosi pažangumo 11-12 klasių mokinių pasiekimų motyvacijos, vidinių resursų ir mokyklinio streso įveikos stilių ypatumus. Tiriamieji: 2006 – 2007 mokslo metais anoniminio anketavimo būdu buvo apklausta 416 jaunuolių t.y. 11-12 klasių mokinių (atitinkančių vidurinės mokyklos pakopą). Atsitiktinės atrankos metu buvo pasirinkta po dvi vidurines mokyklas iš trijų didžiausių Lietuvos miestų. 186 (45%) mokiniai buvo iš Vilniaus, 135 (32%) – iš Kauno ir 95 (23%) – iš Klaipėdos. Visi respondentai buvo 16-19 metų, 162 vaikinai (39%) ir 254 merginos (61%), vienuoliktoje klasėje mokėsi 213 (51%) , dvyliktoje klasėje – 203 (49%) mokiniai. 283 (68%) tyrime dalyvavę mokiniai gyveno pilnose šeimose ir 133 (32%) su vienu iš tėvų. Surinkti duomenys apie mokinių dienos rėžimo ypatybes – miegui ir pamokų ruošai skiriamo laiko trukmę, praleistų pamokų skaičių, papildomą darbą su korepetitoriais – 128 (32%) mokiniai naudojasi ir 284 (68%) nesinaudoja korepetitorių paslaugomis. Tyrimo metu buvo taikyti šie metodai: mokslinė pedagoginės ir psichologinės literatūros analizė, Mokyklinio streso įveikos klausimynas (N. S. Endler, J. D. Parker, 1990; P. Szczepaniak, J. Streliau, K. Wrzesniewski, 1996) ir Pasiekimų motyvacijos klausimynas (AMP), (J. Friedland, Ph.D., S. Marcus, Ph.D., H. Mandel, Ph.D.). IŠVADOS: 1.Pažangumas; pasiekimų motyvacija ir laikas, skiriamas pamokų ruošai, vaikinų mažesni negu merginų. Vaikinai ir merginos laiko... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The aim of the research: to determine and to examine peculiarities of achievement motivation, inner resources and school stress coping styles among 11th – 12th form pupils with different levels of academic achievement. The tasks of the research: 1. To explore peculiarities of school stress coping styles, achievement motivation and inner resources among pupils with different levels of academic achievement. 2. To compare , inner resources, planning and organization between boys and girls. 3. To compare academic achievement, school stress coping styles, achievement motivation, inner resources, planning and organization between 11th and 12th form pupils. 4. To compare academic achievement, school stress coping styles, achievement motivation, inner resources, planning and organization between pupils studying with crammer and studying by themselves. 5. To determine distinctions in academic achievement, school stress coping styles, achievement motivation, inner resources, planning and organization among pupils living in Vilnius, Kaunas and Klaipėda. 6. To estimate correlations between academic achievement and school stress coping styles, achievement motivation, inner resources, planning and organization, studying with crammer. Research methods: Achievement Motivation Profile Scores (J.Friedland, S.Marcus, H.Mandel), Questionnaire of School Stress Coping (N.S.Endler, J.D.Parker, 1990; P.Szczepaniak, J.Streliau, K.Wrzesniewski, 1996) Respondents: 416 11th and 12th form pupils (1... [to full text]