Investigations of children's adjustment following the experience of a residential fire or other disaster has indicated that the level of PTSD symptoms experienced by the child victims varies as a function of exposure and degree of loss incurred due to the trauma in a dose-response relationship. Additionally, other variables may interact with the level of exposure and loss to increase or decrease children's risk of posttraumatic symptomatology following the fire. Children's use of coping strategies has also been shown to significantly predict children's level of posttraumatic stress symptomatology. This study examined the mediating role of coping as well as the contributions of children's attributional style and family environment in the explanation of children's posttraumatic symptomatology following residential fire. In the current study, 108 children and their parents were assessed approximately one to three months and again approximately seven to ten months following their experience of a residential fire. Results indicated that at the second assessment, attributional style served as a moderator between the degree of loss children experienced and children's use of coping strategies. Children with helpless attributional styles reported low levels of active and avoidant coping regardless of their level of loss due to the fire. Children with positive attributional styles reported using low levels of coping only if they also reported low levels of loss; in contrast, those children who reported positive attributional styles and high levels of loss reported using considerably higher levels of coping. In addition, the data indicated that coping acted as a mediator between loss and posttraumatic stress symptoms both at the first and the second assessments. Children's coping activities following a trauma like residential fire may be the avenue through which loss exerts its influence on children's psychological symptoms following residential fire. / Master of Science

Research has found that the prevalence of community violence exposure is relatively high among suburban and urban middle school-aged children. Exposure through witnessing and victimization has been related to antisocial behavior. Active coping has been related to fewer emotional and behavioral problems, whereas avoidant coping is related to conduct disorder. This study examines effects of community violence exposure on antisocial behavior problems (in terms of school infractions) and coping as a moderator of these negative effects of violence exposure. It was hypothesized that 1) there would be a main effect for community violence exposure such that adolescents with high levels of violence exposure (either as a victim or witness) would exhibit greater school misbehavior problems than those with low levels of exposure; 2) there would be main effects for coping such that children with high (vs. low) levels of active coping would exhibit fewer school misbehavior problems, and those with high (vs. low) levels of avoidant coping would exhibit greater school misbehavior problems.; 3) there would be an interaction effect such that children with high levels of violence exposure and high (vs. low) levels of avoidant coping and low (vs. high) levels of active coping would exhibit the greatest level of school misbehavior problems relative to all other groups. Seventy-eight ninth grade male and female students from a predominantly rural setting were recruited and grouped according to high and low self-reports of community violence exposure and active and avoidant coping strategies. School misbehavior was measured through school discipline records. Results indicated high prevalence rates of community violence exposure among school children in a rural setting, replicating previous findings and acknowledging violence exposure beyond at-risk and urban populations. Fifty-five percent reported being a victim of community violence and 86% reported witnessing community violence at least once in their lifetime. A significant interaction indicated that individuals with low levels of both active and avoidant coping exhibited more school infractions as well as more severe and aggressive types of infractions. In addition, for severity and aggressiveness, this interaction effect of coping on school misbehavior was strongest only in individuals with higher levels of community violence exposure. The results of this study provide support for the position that community violence exposure exists among school-aged children in urban and rural communities and this exposure negatively impacts the behavior of children when it is combined with poor coping. Coping appears to play a role in the difference observed among children who experience community violence in relation to school misbehavior. / Master of Science

Millions of Syrians have been displaced due to the events of war since 2011. Among those, half of them are youth under the age of 18. In 2015, Canada launched an initiative to be a new home for Syrian refugees, and youth accounted for a large amount of those resettled. Pre-migration and post-migration stressors have been noted to have profound impacts on mental health and well-being. Additionally, adolescence is a crucial period of psychosocial development, which for Syrian youth has been drastically changed as a consequence of war. This includes being uprooted from their communities of family, friends, and religious groups, as such social support systems are important resources in buffering against stress. The research surrounding adolescent Syrian refugees’ experiences of stress and coping is slowly growing. However, little is known about how teenage Syrian refugees in Canada utilize social support. Therefore, it is important to gain understanding of how teenage Syrian refugees use their social support systems to cope with stressors. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with adolescent Syrian refugees (n=9) aged 16-18 who live in Ontario. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis.
 The findings suggest that youth face pre migration stressors related to the war and post migration stressors related to acculturation and navigating the education system. Family, peers, school staff, and organizations were identified as forms of social support, with each group having unique reasons as to why they were selected. Coping behaviours were broadly categorized as being inherently individualistic or collectivistic. Teenage Syrian refugees draw upon or seek out resources to navigate complex situations they are faced with, and cultural values influence the stress and coping process. These findings may have implications for mental health providers who work with teenage Syrian refugees, the education system, and policy makers who focus on refugees. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc) / The goal of the present study was to understand how teenage Syrian refugees in Canada use their social support systems to cope with stressors. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with nine participants to explore three areas of interest: social supports, coping behaviours, and stressors. The findings suggested that teenage Syrian refugees are able to navigate new and complex situations by drawing upon, or curating, resources. Additionally, culture was a factor in shaping their experiences of the stress and coping process. The results of this study can help mental health providers and those who focus on refugee related policies.

The experience of trauma is prevalent among young adult college students and is often associated with poor mental health outcomes such as symptoms of anxiety. Not all individuals who have experienced trauma, however, develop anxiety, perhaps due to individual-level adaptive characteristics, such as use of adaptive rather than maladaptive coping strategies. Yet, little research has examined the interrelationships between the experience of trauma, specific types of coping strategies, and subclinical anxiety symptoms. A sample of 915 undergraduate students completed self-report measures of trauma, coping strategies, and anxiety symptoms. We hypothesized that traumatic life events would be associated with anxiety symptoms, and that this relation would be moderated by adaptive and maladaptive coping, such that adaptive coping will weaken, whereas maladaptive coping will exacerbate, the trauma-anxiety relationship. Results demonstrated maladaptive coping, but not adaptive coping, was a moderator of the association between the experience of trauma and symptoms of anxiety.

Syftet med studien är att undersöka vilka copingstrategier barn till missbrukande föräldrar använder sig av för att hantera detta missbruk. En kvalitativ ansats och metod har använts för att besvara syftet. Datainsamlingen gjordes genom kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer med sex socialarbetare med yrkeserfarenhet av att möta barn till missbrukande föräldrar. Materialet analyserades tematiskt och därefter applicerades Lazarus och Folkmans (1984) teori om coping på resultaten. Studiens slutsats är att barn har olika typer av copingstrategier för att hantera sina föräldrars missbruk och att copingstrategierna skiljer sig åt beroende på barnens ålder och kön. / The purpose of the study is to investigate the coping strategies that children use when dealing with their parents' addiction. A qualitative approach and method was used to answer the purpose. The collection of data was acquired through qualitative semi-structured interviews with six social workers with professional experience of meeting children with addicted parents. The material was thematically analyzed and then the theory of coping by Lazarus and Folkman (1984) was applied on the results. The conclusion of the study is that the children have different types of coping strategies when dealing with their parents' abuse. The coping strategies differ based on age and gender of the children.

Bullying is a pervasive event that affects individuals in a variety of ways. For example, bullied individuals display an array of psychological and related psychosocial problems associated with victimization. There is a push for a transformation in the bullying paradigm to include the psychological and psychosocial symptomologies of both the perpetrator and victim. This study addressed the lack of qualitative research on coping mechanisms for adult victims of bullying. Due to the pervasive nature of the phenomena, the following was explored: (a) descriptions of bullying as expressed by adult victims, (b) adult victims' coping processes and methods, and (c) adult victims' emotional responses to being bullied. A qualitative phenomenological research approach was applied to understand the lived experiences of this population. The theoretical framework was based on Folkman and Lazarus's transactional model of stress and coping. Eight individuals participated in the study and face-to-face interviews were conducted with each participant. Based on the results of interviews and thematic analysis, the majority of participants (34%) reported that job-related demands and coercion such as social exclusion, cyberthreats, verbal abuse, sexual abuse, job-related intimidation, and physical harm were the main forms of bullying experienced. The coping process adopted by 62% of the participants was to remain calm during the bullying incident. However, 62% used retaliatory confrontation as their main coping method. Mental stress was the main emotional response to bullying. The findings of this study can inform the adoption of positive social change policy actions that promote resiliency among bullied adults at the community level and within organizational settings.

Syftet med studien var att undersöka om det fanns några samband mellan femfaktormodellen och copingstrategier hos universitetsstudenter i Sverige, samt vilka personlighetsegenskaper som relaterade till de olika copingstrategierna. Genom att använda kvantitativ metod konstruerades ett enkätformulär som publicerades i olika grupper på Facebook. Studien gick ut på att undersöka hur de fem personlighetsdimensionerna utåtriktning, vänlighet, målmedvetenhet, känslomässig instabilitet och öppenhet relaterade till fyra utvalda copingstrategier: aktiv coping, undvikande coping, beteendemässig frånkoppling och nyttjande av emotionellt stöd. Vi använde oss av olika teorier kring vad som påverkar individers val av copingstrategier. Teorierna säger emot varandra och därför ville vi betrakta vår studie som ytterligare ett bidrag till forskningen, för att analysera vilken teori vår undersökning stöttar. Totalt deltog 121 personer i studien och datan analyserades genom multipla linjära regressionsanalyser, detta för att belysa vilka personlighetsegenskaper som predicerade vilka copingstrategier. Våra hypoteser var att utåtriktning skulle vara associerat med hög aktiv coping, att känslomässig instabilitet skulle vara associerat med högt nyttjande av emotionellt stöd och låg aktiv coping och att målmedvetenhet skulle vara associerat med hög aktiv coping. Genom multipla linjära regressionsanalyser visade resultaten i studien på att personlighetsegenskaperna utåtriktning, målmedvetenhet och känslomässig instabilitet predicerade aktiv coping positivt. Personlighetsegenskaperna utåtriktning och målmedvetenhet predicerade undvikande coping negativt. Personlighetsegenskaperna utåtriktning och målmedvetenhet predicerade beteendemässig frånkoppling negativt. Personlighetsegenskaperna utåtriktning och vänlighet predicerade emotionell coping positivt.Vi drog slutsatsen att det fanns en stark koppling mellan de fem personlighetsegenskaperna och de fyra copingstrategierna. / The purpose of this study was to examine whether there were any associations between the big five and coping strategies among university students in Sweden, as well as to examine which personality traits that would predict the different coping strategies. By using quantitative method, a survey was constructed and published in various groups on Facebook. The aim of the study was to examine if the five personality dimensions: extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, neuroticism and openness would relate to four selected coping strategies: active coping, denial coping, behavioral disengagement and use of emotional support. We used theories on what influences individuals' choices of coping strategies. The theories contradict each other and therefore we wanted to consider our study as another contribution to the research area, to analyze which theory our study supports. A total of 121 people participated in the study and we analyzed the data through multiple linear regression analyzes, in order to shed a light on which personality traits predicted which coping strategies. Our hypotheses were that extraversion would be associated with high active coping, that neuroticism would be associated with high use of emotional support and low active coping, and that conscientiousness would be associated with high active coping. Through multiple linear regression analyzes, the results of the study showed that the personality traits extraversion, conscientiousness and neuroticism predicted active coping positively. The personality traits extraversion and conscientiousness predicted the denial coping strategy negatively. The personality traits extraversion and conscientiousness predicted behavioral disengagement negatively. The personality traits extraversion and agreeableness predicted use of emotional support positively. We concluded that there was a strong association between the big five personality traits and the four coping strategies.

Bakgrund: Endometrios är en kronisk inflammation som drabbar cirka en av tio personer i fertil ålder födda med en livmoder. Trots att sjukdomen är vanlig är det få som känner till den. Endometrios är inte svårt att diagnostisera men på grund av okunskap kring sjukdomen tar det lång tid för den drabbade att få en diagnos. Behandlingarna kan påverka den drabbade både fysiskt och psykiskt vilket leder till försämrad livskvalité. Det är därför viktigt att lyfta de copingstrategier som finns att tillgå. Syfte: Att sammanställa samt beskriva copingstrategier för personer som lever med endometrios. Metod: En beskrivande litteraturstudie utifrån elva tematiskt analyserade studier. Huvudresultat: Huvudresultatet av studien visade att problemfokuserade copingstrategier i form av egenvårdsmetoder och livsstilsanpassning minskade symtom, gav en känsla av kontroll och hade positiv inverkan på livskvalitén. Den mest användbara egenvårdsmetoden var värme från vetekudde, varma vattenflaskor och/eller kläder. Livsstilsanpassning i form av dietförändring samt planering av arbete och aktiviteter visade sig vara gynnsamt relaterat till smärtsymtom. Copingstrategierna var det som hade mest smärtlindrande effekt både före och efter bekräftad diagnos. Slutsats: Problemfokuserade copingstrategier i form av egenvårdsmetoder samt livsstilsanpassning var de mest användbara strategierna för symtomlindring vid endometrios. Det långa tidsspannet från första vårdkontakten till en säkerställd diagnos var psykiskt påfrestande. För att korta ner tiden mellan första vårdmötet och diagnossättningen samt kunna ge de drabbade tillfredställande information om vad sjukdomen innebär krävs utbildad vårdpersonal. Utbildning om endometrios behövs för vårdpersonal inom fler instanser utöver endometriosteamen eftersom en person med endometrios kanske söker vård på en akutmottagning eller en hälsocentral från början. / Background: Endometriosis is a chronic inflammation which affects one out of ten people who are fertile and born with a uterus. Despite the disease being common only a few people know about it. Endometriosis is not difficult to diagnose but due to the lack of knowledge about the disease it takes a long time for the person to get a diagnosis. The treatments affect the person physically and mentally which lead to lower quality of life and therefore it is important to enlighten available coping strategies. Aim: To compile and describe coping strategies for people living with endometriosis. Method: A descriptive literature study based on eleven thematically analysed studies. Main Results: The main result showed that problem focused coping strategies such as self-management and lifestyle adjustments decreased symptoms, led to a sense of control, and influenced positively on quality of life. It showed that the most useful self-management methods were the heat from heat pillows, warm water bottles, and/or clothes. Lifestyle adjustments that proved decrease in pain was diet change, scheduling of work and activities. The coping strategies were the most successful methods regarding painrelieving, both before and after confirmed diagnosis. Conclusion: Problem focused coping strategies such as self-management and lifestyle adjustments were the most successful strategies to decrease endometriosis related symptoms. The time span between the first contact with healthcare up until confirmed diagnosis was long and psychologically stressful. What is needed to shorten that time span and give pleasing information about the impact of the disease is educated healthcare workers. Education about endometriosis is needed in many units, not only in the endometriosis teams since people without a diagnosis might seek care in the emergency room or other instances to begin with.

No description available.

Coping and resilience occurs on a regular basis within the lives of children residing in at-risk communities. Coping refers to an action or behaviour on behalf of the child with the aim of diminishing the burden of psychological and emotional stressors. Coping can be achieved by means of internal factors, such as avoidance, positive cognitive restructuring, and wishful thinking, as well as by means of external factors such as social support. Resilience was operationalized as the ability of the child to bounce back from adversity or stress in order to achieve positive developmental outcomes. This ability to overcome adverse events can be achieved by means of external as well as internal factors, and thus resilience is understood as a socio-ecological construct (Ungar, 2008). Hence a theoretical link between the two constructs has been identified in relevant literature, since both coping and resilience refer to children‟s ability to deal with stress and adversity they encounter. A quantitative method of research was chosen for this study in order to investigate the relationship between coping behaviour and resilience processes. The sample consisted of 262 primary school pupils aged 10 to 14, residing in a severely socio-economically deprived community in Vereeniging, Gauteng. An equal distribution of gender was achieved in the sample. Two questionnaires were administered to determine the coping behaviour and resilience processes of participants, namely The Children‟s Coping Strategy Checklist (CCSC) compiled by Ayers and Sandler (1999), and the Resilience and Youth Developmental Model (RYDM) by West.Ed (1999; 2002). Both measures were administered in Afrikaans, which was the medium of teaching in the school. All ethical requirements for a study of this nature were met with precision. Descriptive statistics regarding the sample revealed that the majority of the participants were aged 12 years, in Grade 6 and Afrikaans speaking. Furthermore the measuring instruments yielded acceptable reliability coefficients, with the CCSC as well as the RYDM obtaining a value of ρ = 0,98. Measurement model 1, consisting of an eleven-factor structure (coping consisting of six factors and resilience of five factors) indicated the best fit, with a Chi-square (χ²) value of 4667,30; CFI of 0,95, and a TLI value of 0,95. Furthermore, significant but tenuous statistically correlational relationship was observed between coping and resilience. A coping measurement model could be conceptualized from the results of this study. Possible limitations of the study were that: The data was collected in 2010, with secondary analysis being the focus of this study; the CCSC as well as the RYDM are relatively new measures within a South African context, and although both were translated for use in this project, cultural equivalence was not ensured. Possible recommendations for further studies may include the development of standardised South African measures, as well as qualitative studies to explore and provide an in-depth understanding of coping behaviour and resilience processes in children. / MA (Research Psychology), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2014