Coping is a dynamic, situation-specific reaction to stress. It is a set of concrete
responses to stressful situations that are intended to resolve the problem and reduces stress.
Endler and Parker gave following Coping Strategies:
1.Task-oriented Strategy:
• It is goal management through confrontation with the problem.
• This involves obtaining information about the stressful situation and making best use of resources available.
• It also involves prioritising and acting so as to deal directly with the stressful situation.
• Mostly it is used by optimists.
Task-oriented strategies are particularly effective when the resources in the environment are within the control of the individual. It is cognitive response to stress.
2.Emotion-Hyper oriented Strategy:
• It is emotion management.
• This strategy involve efforts to maintain hope and to control one’s emotions. Individual works on his emotions rather than situations and goals.
•
This mainly happens when the stressful event is such that it can not be manipulated in any way eg. loss of spouse or a family member.
• The individual deals with his emotions of anxiety, helplessness, hopelessness etc. and tries to gain hope and happiness again in his life.
• It can also involve venting feelings of anger and frustration or deciding that nothing can be done to change things.
• Emotion oriented strategies are particularly effective when the resources in the environment are beyond the controlled of the individual.
Avoidance-Hyper oriented strategy
• It is avoiding stressful event by indulging in different activities. Individual does not want to
accept that he is facing such a stressful situation.
• This involves denying or minimising the seriousness of the situation.
• It also involves conscious suppression of stressful thoughts and their replacement by self protective thoughts.
• Watching T.V., attending parties or going to sleep are example of this type of coping.
• It is basically escapism by using defense mechanisms.
According to Lazarus and Folkman, coping responses can be divided into two types of responses:
(a)Problem-Focused:
• It includes taking direct action to solve the problem.
• It is seeking information that will be relevant to the solution for, e.g., developing a study schedule to cope up with the semester demands, and thereby reduce examination pressure.
• It is basically confronting with the problem using all the available resources.
(b) Emotion-Focused: It refers to reduction of the negative emotional reaction to stress, e.g., by distracting oneself from the problem, relaxing or seeking comfort from others.
