Personality Characteristics and Coping Patterns

Author(s): John A. Fleishman

Source: Journal of Health and Social Behavior, Vol. 25, No. 2 (Jun., 1984), pp. 229-244
Published by: American Sociological Association
Stable URL: [Link]
Accessed: 18-11-2015 12:40 UTC

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at [Link]
info/about/policies/[Link]

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content
in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship.
For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@[Link].

Sage Publications, Inc. and American Sociological Association are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend
access to Journal of Health and Social Behavior.

[Link]

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS AND COPING PATTERNS 229

regulation." Milbank Memorial Fund Wilken,Paul

Quarterly59:209-23. 1979 Entrepreneurship: A Comparativeand
Waitzkin,
H. [Link],New Jersey:
1979 "A Marxianinterpretationof the growth AblexPublishing Corporation.
and developmentofcoronary caretechnol-
ogy." AmericanJournalof PublicHealth
69:1260-68. Wolfe,S., T., Sasaki,I. Cushner
Weber,Max 1971 "Assumption of attitudestowardabortion
1958 The ProtestantEthic and the Spiritof duringphysicianeducation." Obstetrics
[Link] York: Scribners. and Gynecology 37:141-47.

Personality
Characteristics
and CopingPatterns
JOHN A. FLEISHMAN
Universityof Maryland

of Healthand Social Behavior1984,Vol. 25 (June):229-244

Journal

This study examines patterns in people's use of certain behaviors to cope withstressfullife
[Link] addition,it examines relationshipsbetween coping and the general person-
alityvariables of mastery,self-esteem,self-denial,and nondisclosureofproblems. Data come
froma randomsample of2,299 adults interviewedas part of a largerstudyof stressand coping
in everydaylife. Results show modest relationshipsin the use of coping behaviors. Strongest
relationshipsoccur among emotion-focusedcoping behaviors, whichdeal withstress by rein-
terpretingthe situationor by denyingor minimizingthe [Link] contrast,coping by direct
instrumentalaction is not related to seeking advice. The personalityvariable of self-denial
affectsuse of emotion-focusedcoping,and nondisclosurereduces [Link]
self-esteemhad weaker [Link] suggest thatproblem-focusedcoping is not a homo-
geneous category;coping may depend upon whetherproblems occur eitherin an interpersonal
or impersonalcontextand on whetherone prefersto act independentlyor seek out aid from
others.

Research on the impact of stressfullife cir- uniform;instead,the impactdepends upon

cumstances has benefited by broadening its featuresofthesocialsetting and uponcharac-
focus. Recent studies go beyond documenting teristicsof theindividual.
a relationshipbetween certain social factors Copingbehaviorsare an important aspectof
and psychological distress. Instead, they at- [Link] bothovert
tempt to model the process whereby social and covertbehaviorsthatare takento reduce
stress is translatedinto psychological distress or eliminate psychological
distressor stressful
(Pearlin et al., 1981).1 The premiseunderlying conditions.A personwho is facingtrying cir-
such effortsis that the impact of stress is not cumstancesattemptsto deal with them in
some [Link]- people may employ
different typesof copingbehaviors,ranging
Thanksare due to MorrisRosenberg, GregoryC.
Elliott,EdwardZ. Dager,and BarbaraMeekerfor fromactiveattackson theproblemto down-
valuablecomments The University playing
on earlierdrafts. thesituation
ortryingtoremaincalmin
of MarylandComputerScience Centerprovided the face of [Link] choice of coping
fundsforanalysesreportedin thispaper.I thank behaviorscan moderatethe degreeto which
LeonardPearlinforgenerously permittingmeto use psychological
his data. distress results from social
Addresscommunications to: JohnA. Fleishman, stress.
Department of Sociology,University of Maryland, Studiesof copingin responseto stressare
CollegePark,MD 20740. beginningto [Link] has ad-

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
230 JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

dressed threeissues: (1) developmentof a [Link],behavior

typology of copingbehaviors,(2) examination thatchangesthemeaningofa situation (Pear-
of theimpactof copingon psychological dis- tin'sand Schooler'ssecondcategory)can also
tress,and (3) investigation offactorsaffectingreduce emotional distress (Pearlin's and
use ofdifferent [Link] present Schooler's thirdcategory).To distinguish
studyfocuses on the thirdissue and asks copingbehaviorsin termsof theirfocus,i.e.,
whetherpeople's choice among coping re- dealingprimarily withproblemsor withemo-
sponsesis a function ofmoregeneralpersonal- tions,seemsopen to theleast amountof am-
ityattributes. Do peopleattempt to deal with biguity. In thisstudy,therefore,
behaviorsthat
stressina mannerconsistent withbroaderdis- appearto have a primary instrumental nature
positionsand orientations? willbe distinguished
fromall otherbehaviors,
It is usefulto placethisresearchquestionin and thelatterwillbe consideredas emotion-
thecontextofpreviousfindings. Copingis not focused.
a unidimensional phenomenon;it includesa Distinctionsamongtypesof copingare im-
numberof typesof [Link] the most portant, fordifferent
typesmaydiffer in their
basic level, one can differentiate problem- antecedentsand [Link] studies
focused from emotion-focused coping have shownthatcopingbehaviorsdifferin
(Folkmanand Lazarus, 1980).The former re- theirefficacy [Link]
fersto acts takento removeor mitigatethe Moos (1981) reportedthatavoidancecoping
sourceof stress,such as negotiating a com- actually increased distress, while active-
promise,seekinga raise,orchanging jobs. The cognitivecopingreduceddistress,especially
latterrefersto attempts to reducepsychologi- [Link]-behavioral copingtendedto
cal distress,suchas lookingon thebright side have inconsistent and nonsignificant effects.
or turning one's mindaway fromproblems. Pearlinand Schooler likewiseshowed that
People can use bothproblem-and emotion- copingbehaviorsare differentially efficacious
focusedcopingin timesofstress,and ignoring (1978:Table1).
eithertypecreatesan incomplete picture. Such findingspointto the importanceof
Furtherdistinctions amongtypesof coping understanding factorsthatinfluencethechoice
behaviorshave been [Link] [Link] personto
Schooler (1978) classifiedcoping behaviors take activestepsto remedya problem,while
intothreecategories: (1) responsesthatchange anotherresignshimselfto his fate? Prior
the situation,(2) responses that alter the studiespointto two sets of factors.
meaningor appraisalof thestress,and (3) re- The firstset includes sociodemographic
sponses intended to control distressful variablesof age, education,gender,and in-
feelings. The first type corresponds to [Link] brief,datasuggestthateducationand
problem-focused copingand thethirdtypeto incomecorrelatepositively withuse ofactive-
emotion-focused [Link] the secondtype, behavioralcopingand withuse of behaviors
Pearlinand Schoolerincludedcopingstrate- that are relativelyefficaciousin alleviating
gies, such as comparing oneselffavorably to distress(Billingsand Moos, 1981;Pearlinand
othersand ignoringnegativeaspects of the Schooler,1978). Genderand age appear to
situation, thatsuggestan emotionalfocus. have small and inconsistent effects(Billings
BillingsandMoos (1981)proposeda roughly and Moos, 1981;Folkmanand Lazarus, 1980;
similar typology, consisting of active- Pearlinand Schooler,1978).
behavioral,i.e., problem-focused; avoidance, Aspects of the stress-producing situation
i.e., emotion-focused; and active-cognitive comprisethesecondsetofvariablesthatinflu-
[Link] active-cognitive categoryincludes ence [Link] Lazarus compared
bothtryingto look on the positiveside and contexts ofwork,health,andfamily andfound
considering severalalternatives for handling thatproblem-focused copingwas usedmoreat
thesituation. Thiscategory thuscontainsboth work,whileemotion-focused copingwas em-
problem- and emotion-focused elements. ployedto deal withhealthstresses(1980:Table
Consensus upon a clear-cuttypologyof 2). Billingsand Moos foundthatchild-related
coping remainsto be achieved. Proposed problems resulted in high proportionsof
typologies do notyetoffer precisedistinctions emotion-focused coping,whileillnesshadhigh

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS AND COPING PATTERNS 231

proportions of problem-focused coping towardactivelychangingthe environment.

(1981:Table3). Differences in the samplesof Such change-attempts assume thatone's ac-
stressful
eventsand in thespecificcopingbe- tionscan [Link] in their
haviorsstudiedmakeitdifficult tocomparethe generalcontrolorientations (Lefcourt,1976;
resultsof thesetwo [Link] bothstudies, Rotter,1954).The psychological resourceof
however,typeofstressful contexthad,at best, mastery reflectsthisorientation. Peoplewitha
ratherweakrelationships to typeofcopingbe- highsense of masterybelievethattheycan
haviorused. controlaspects of theirlife situation;those
The presentstudyextendspriorresearchby witha low sense of mastery believethatcon-
examining theimpacton copingofa thirdsetof trolattempts are [Link] is reasonableto hy-
factors, hithertoneglected. Pearlin and pothesizethatpeople highin masterywillbe
Schoolerreferred to thesefactorsas psycho- predisposedto use problem-focused coping
logicalresources,definedas "the personality techniques, reflectingtheirgeneralexpectation
characteristics thatpeopledrawuponto help thatsuchbehaviorsare efficacious.
themwithstand threatsposed by eventsand Severalstudieshavereported thata general
objectsin theenvironment" (1978:5).Person- sense of masteryor controlmoderatesthe
alitycharacteristics aregeneraldispositions or negativeeffectsof stress(Johnsonand Sara-
orientations thatare relevantin a varietyof son,1978;Kobasa, 1979;PearlinandSchooler,
situations. Presumably, suchtrait-like individ- 1978).Otherstudies,however,havefoundno
ual difference factorspredisposepeople to significant relationshipbetweenfeelingsof
prefercertaintypesof specificcopingbehav- controlandpsychological distress(Sandlerand
iors,leadingto a moreor less consistent style Lakey,1982;Wheaton,1982).Investigations of
[Link] distinction betweenpersonality the stress-moderating effectof masteryhave
characteristics and copingbehaviorsis one of oftenbeen based on thepremisethatthisdis-
generality or levelofabstraction. Generalper- positioninfluencesuse of copingbehaviors,
sonalityorientations may be manifestin the whichthenreduce [Link] manystudies
choice of specificcopingbehaviorsin a par- havenotprovideda strong testofthispremise,
ticularsituation. because theyhavenotincludedanymeasures
Thisreasoning raisestwointerrelated issues. [Link] are diffi-
First,is therea relationship betweengeneral cultto interpret foreitherof tworeasons:(1)
personality factorsand specificcopingbehav- mastery maynotaffect coping,or(2) theforms
iors? Do generaldispositionsaffectspecific ofcopingthatare affected bymastery maybe
actions?Second,ifpersonality characteristicsineffectivein [Link] present
consistently affectuse ofcopingbehaviors, do studydirectly examinesthelinkbetweenmas-
certaincopingstylesarise? In otherwords, teryand specificcopingbehaviors.
peoplemaydisplayconsistent preference fora Emotion-focused copingacts to reinterpret
particular typeof [Link] people may or redefine a problematic situationratherthan
typicallyengagein problem-focused attempts to tacklea [Link] reinterpre-
to changetheirenvironment, whileothersmay tationsmay be affectedby the personality
typicallyconcernthemselveswithmanaging characteristic of denial; thischaracteristic is
[Link] classified as evidencedby a generalpropensity to ignore
problem- vs. emotion-focused copers? difficulties
and to look on the brightside of
Ratherthanisolatea singlepersonality char- events. Facilityat denial may lead to the
acteristicas the sole resourcethatinfluences choiceof specificcopingbehaviorsthatfocus
coping,it seems morereasonableto assume on controlling unpleasantemotions.
that several characteristics, actingtogether, Finally, the personalitycharacteristic of
affectthe resultant [Link] self-esteemmay affectboth problem-and
personality characteristics mayrelateto some emotion-focused [Link] in
typesof coping,butnotto [Link] particu- support ofbothpossibilities [Link]
lar, some personality variablesmayrelateto self-esteem, an attitudeofacceptanceand lik-
problem-focused coping,and othersmayre- ingforoneself(Rosenberg, 1979),maygiverise
late to emotion-focused coping. to feelingsof confidencein one's abilityto
Problem-focused copingefforts are directed overcomeadversity.A challengeto someone

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
232 JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

highin self-esteem maybe an overwhelmingSchoolerhave reporteddetailsof the scales

threat to someonelowinself-esteem. Thisrea- used to measure masteryand self-esteem.
soningsuggeststhatself-esteem relatesposi- Masterywas measuredby seven items to
tivelyto activeproblem-focused [Link] which the respondentindicatedextent of
theotherhand,previousresearchhas founda agreement or disagreement. Exemplaryitems
relationship betweenself-esteem and thetrait are: "I have littlecontroloverthethingsthat
of repression, as measuredby therepression- happento me," and "I can do just aboutany-
sensitization scale([Link],1964;Zannaand thingI reallysetmymindto." Each itemwas
Olson,1982).Suchdataimplythatpeoplehigh coded so that higherscores representeda
in self-esteem maintain theirpositiveoutlook, greatersense of mastery, and theitemswere
in part,by ignoring or denyingnegativeor summedto createa totalmasteryscore for
threatening information. This findingsuggests each respondent.
that self-esteemis negativelyrelated to To measureself-esteem, respondents were
emotion-focused coping. askedthetenitemscomprising theRosenberg
In sum,theresearchreportedhereinvesti- (1965)Self-Esteem Scale. As withthemastery
gateswhetherthegeneralpersonality charac- items,respondentsindicatedthe extentof
teristicsof mastery,denial,and self-esteem agreementor disagreement on a four-point
affecttheuse of specificcopingbehaviorsin scale. Amongtheitemsare: "I feelthatI have
stressfullifesituations. Employing thedistinc- a numberof good qualities,"and "At timesI
tion betweenproblem-and emotion-focusedthinkI am no goodat all." The scale contains
coping,thestudyaskswhether certainperson- bothpositivelyand negatively wordeditems,
alitycharacteristics, e.g.,mastery, use of whichwere summedto obtaina total self-
affect
the formertype,whileothercharacteristics,[Link] has
e.g., denial,relateprimarily to thelattertype. been shownto be bothreliableand valid(cf.
Further,it examineswhetherproblem-and Rosenberg,1979).
emotion-focused coping constitutecoherent The measureofdenialhas notbeenreported
copingstyles. [Link] itemsmeasuredwillingness
to talk over [Link] ad-
ditionalitemsreferred to tendenciestolookon
METHOD
thebrightside or to persuadeoneselfthatev-
Sample erything is [Link]-with
different [Link] oftheitemsappearin
Thedatacomefromthefirst waveofa study AppendixA, whichalso presents theresultsof
of stressand copingconductedby Pearlinand a factoranalysisspecifying two [Link]
associates(Pearlinand Johnson,1977;Pearlin two setsof itemsclearlytap different factors.
and Schooler,1978).The basic studydesign The firstfactorrepresents self-denial,i.e., a
has been describedin the reportsjust cited. tendency to avoidthinking aboutnegativeas-
Sufficeit to say forpresentpurposesthatthe pectsof one's [Link] secondfactorcan be
datacomefrominterviews witha randomsam- called nondisclosure of problems,i.e., a ten-
pleof2,299peopleaged18to65whoarerepre- dencyto avoid revealingone's problemsto
sentative ofthepopulation intheChicagomet- [Link] obliquerotation,thefactors
ropolitanarea. The interview covereda wide correlated-.136, suggesting thattheyrepre-
rangeof topics,including sourcesof stressin sent somewhatdifferent [Link]
fourroleareas: work,finances, marriage,and comprising eachfactorweresummedto obtain
parenthood. Within eachofthefourroleareas, indicesof self-denial and of nondisclosure.
respondents indicated frequency ofuse ofspe- [Link] experienceofstresspresumably
cific coping [Link] interviewalso initiates [Link]
containedmeasuresof thegeneralpersonality respondents areunderstressmusttherefore be
attributes ofmastery, denial,and self-esteem. consideredin an analysisof [Link]-
dentsansweredquestionsconcerning persis-
Measures tent sources of stress, which Pearlin and
Schoolertermedlife-strains, in the fourrole
Personality Characteristics. Pearlin and areas of occupation,finances,marriage, and

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS AND COPING PATTERNS 233

parenthood. Multipleitemsmeasuredexposure sponsesof selectiveignoring, emotionaldis-

to stressin each area. In the occupational charge,positivecomparisons, and passiveac-
realm,stressesincludeworkingin a noxious [Link] parentalcopingfactorsare use
environment, beingunderintenseworkpres- ofdiscipline andadvice-seeking, bothofwhich
sure, receivinglow extrinsicrewards,and are problem-focused, as well as selectiveig-
beingtreatedin an unfairor depersonalized noring, resignation,positivecomparisons, and
[Link] persistent mis- self-reassurance,all of which are more
behaviorand lack of [Link] emotion-focused. Finally,financialcopingin-
includenotbeingacceptedandappreciated by cludes the problem-focused behaviorof bud-
one's spouse,beingtreatedin a nonreciprocalgetingand the emotion-focused behaviorsof
or unfairmanner,and failingto live up to positivecomparisons,selectiveignoring, de-
commonroleexpectations. Financialstressin- valuationofmoney,optimistic faith,andrumi-
cludeshavingtoo littlemoneyto payforfood, nation.
medicalcare, and [Link] role No hardandfastrulesexistforclassifying a
area,itemsmeasuring exposureto stresswere specifictypeofbehavioras eitherproblem- or
summedto providean overallindexof stress emotion-focused. Takingdirectactionto rem-
encountered. Moredetailedinformation on the edy a problem,for example,can alleviate
natureoftheitemscomprising each subtype of negativeemotions. For presentpurposes,
stresscan be foundin AppendixA of Pearlin copingfactorswere designatedas problem-
and Schooler(1978). focusedonlyifthecomponent behaviorswere
Coping. In each of thefourrole areas, re- active attemptsto changethe environment,
spondentsansweredquestionsconcerning the e.g., workaction,financial
budgeting, parental
mannerin whichtheycoped [Link]- discipline,and maritalnegotiation, or if the
spondentsindicatedhow frequently theyen- behaviorcouuld be seen as the firststep in
gagedin each of a set of specificbehaviors. formulating a plan of action, e.g., advice-
Factoranalysesofthecopingitemswerecon- seeking.
ductedwithineach role area [Link]-
pendixB showstheresultsof theseanalyses.
The analyses were conductedin a manner RESULTS
slightlydifferent fromthat of Pearlin and
Schooler, who used principalcomponents Relations among Coping Behaviors
[Link] present
analyses,in contrast,used principalfactorex- No single,commonlyacceptedmethodof
[Link] measuring copingstylesexists.A numberof
madebecause theanalysisdid notattempt to differentapproachesare possible. Folkman
explain all of the variationin each item, andLazarus(1980),forexample,operationally
therebycallingforfactoranalysisinsteadof definedcopingpatterns intermsoftherelative
principalcomponents, and because it seemed proportion of problem-focused and emotion-
reasonableto assumethatsomecopingfactors focusedcopingbehaviors;peoplewhoconsis-
might be relatedtoothers,therebyrequiring an tentlyshowedsimilarrelativeproportions of
[Link] anyevent,theresultsde- the two typesof copingin different coping
partonlyslightly fromthosereported in Pear- episodeswere deemedto have a copingpat-
lin'sand Schooler'sAppendix4. [Link] Folkmanand Lazarus noted,alterna-
The itemsloadingon each factorweresum- tive operationalizations of copingstylesare
medto obtainan indexofthefrequency ofuse possibleand maybe informative.
[Link] Folkman'sand Lazarus' approachrequires
work,copingbehaviorsincludetakingaction, longitudinal dataon copinginseveralepisodes.
substituting extrinsicfor intrinsicrewards, The present study examines correlations
comparing oneselfwithotherspositively, and amongdifferent copingbehaviorsat a single
selectivelyignoring The firstis a [Link] the
difficulties.
problem-focused behavior;thelatterthreeare regularco-occurrenceof certainbehaviors
more emotion-focused. Coping withmarital across [Link] interindividual con-
stressesincludesthetwoproblem-focused re- sistenciescan be seen in the magnitude and

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
234 JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

patternof correlations amongcopingbehav- ternsthat are obscuredif only two broad

[Link]- categoriesof copingare used.
binations ofbehaviorsthatparticular individu- Copingstylescouldemergein eitheroftwo
als may employ,but it can reveal patterns ways. First, people could display patterns
commonto a numberof people. withina particularrole area. Second,people
At themostbasic level,thefactoranalyses maycope similarly whenfacingproblemsin
reportedin AppendixB show that certain different roleareas. Analysesthatfollowcon-
copingbehaviorsdo co-occur. Specificbe- sidereach possibility.
haviorscan be groupedtogether to formmore All analysesreportedhere use the largest
[Link] presentpurposes,these relevantsegment [Link] Table 1,the
resultsoperationalize compositemeasuresof analysisof workcopingwas based on 1,173
different copingbehaviors,witheach factor employedpeople;theanalysisof maritalcop-
representing a [Link] 'question ingwas based on 1,469marriedrespondents;
ofinterest amongthecoping the1,020individuals
is therelationship withchildren underage21
behaviorsdefinedby theresultsof thefactor provideddata on parentalcoping;and the393
[Link] level of analysisis not as de- peoplewhoreported havingfinancialproblems
tailedas lookingat correlationsamongthein- formed thesamplefortheanalysisoffinancial
dividualitems,but it is more detailedthan [Link] analysesused list-wisedeletionof
lookingmerelyat thetwobroadcategoriesof cases withmissingdata.
problem-and emotion-focused [Link] Coping withinEach Role Area. Table 1 pre-
intermediate level of analysis reduces the sentscorrelationsamongthecopingbehaviors
complexityof ascertaining a patternamong withineach role area. The table contains
numerouscorretations, butit mayrevealpat- zero-ordercorrelationsand partialcorrela-

TABLE 1. Correlationsamong Coping Behaviorsin Each Role Area

A. Marital Coping (N = 1,469)

Advice Negotiation Acceptance Ignoring Comparison
Negotiation -.054 (.049)
Passive Acceptance .120 (.016) -.149 (.051)
Selective Ignoring .064 (.004) -.041 (.077) .465 (.404)
Positive Comparison -.087 (.028) .278 (.097) -.235 (-.023) -.113 (.013)
Emotional Discharge .254 (.191) -.122 (.023) .246 (.110) .152 (.071) -.193 (-.038)
B. Parental Coping (N = 1,020)
Discipline Advice Ignoring Comparison Resignation
Advice-Seeking .186 (.142)
Selective Ignoring -.095 (-.120) -.011 (-.031)
Positive Comparison -.221 (-.188) -.125 (-.093) .017 (.032)
Resignation -.067 (-.093) .010 (-.010) .313 (.307) -.066 (-.051)
Self-Reassurance .124 (.098) .027 (.002) .377 (.371) .015 (.036) .156 (.147)
C. Financial Coping (N =393)
Budgeting Comparison Devaluing Ignoring Faith
Positive Comparison -.220 (-.193)
Devaluing Money .135 (.166) .027 (.003)
Selective Ignoring .108 (.085) - .193 (- .174) - .171 (- .156)
OptimisticFaith -.164 (-131) .091 (.058) -.105 (-.137) .162 (.194)
Rumination - .148 (- .099) .261 (.223) 141 (.108) - .135 (- .102) .122 (.069)
D. WorkCoping (N= 1,173)
Action Substitution Comparison
Reward Substitution - .174 (- .177)
Positive Comparison .201 (.205) - .195 (- .186)
Selective Ignoring .182 (.180) .213 (.206) - .101 (-.089)
Note: Numbers in parenthesesare partialcorrelations,controllingfor level of stress.

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS AND COPING PATTERNS 235

tions,controlling [Link] general, therelationship betweenthesesets of behav-

controlling forstressalterstheoverallpattern iorsis notone of strictmutualexclusivity.
onlyslightly. Use of positivecomparisonsproduces a
Giventhelargesamplesize,mostofthecor- complexpatternof [Link] workand fi-
relationsare statistically significant,including nances,positivecomparison tendsto be nega-
[Link] tivelyassociatedwithemotion-focused cop-
the coefficients of greatestmagnitude, how- ing,butin marriageand parenthood, positive
ever,one sees thatmanyof theminvolvebe- comparisonhas negligiblerelationships with
haviorsthatreflect copingbypassivedenialor emotion-focused coping,especiallywhenlevel
reinterpretation. Thispattern can be discerned of stressis [Link] is easierto
byfocusing on selectiveignoring. In each role distortor reinterpret one's situation in thelat-
area,selectiveignoring is positivelyrelatedto terareas,whereexplicitstandards ofcompari-
passivemodesof coping,suchas substitution son are hardto [Link] themoreimpersonal
of rewardsin work(.21), optimistic faithin areasofworkandfinance,convincing oneself
finances(.16), passiveacceptancein marriage thatothersare in worseshapeis evidently in-
(.47), resignation(.31) and self-reassurancecompatible withpersuading oneselfthatone's
(.38) inparenthood. Thesecorrelations remain problemsare unimportant.
substantial whenstressis controlled. Making positive comparisonscorrelates
On the otherhand,findingsforproblem- positively withactionat workand negotiation
focusedcopingbehaviorsare less [Link] inmarriage, butnegatively withbudgeting and
people were consistentin their use of a [Link] inconsistent relation-
problem-focused copingstyle,one wouldex- ships betweenpositivecomparisonand in-
pect to findhighcorrelations betweensuch strumental copingmayarisefromdiffering in-
[Link] parenthood, thecorrelation be- tensities
of stressin different roleareas. Posi-
tweendisciplineand advice-seeking is .19. In tivecomparison is to a certainextenta reflec-
marriage,however, negotiationcorrelates [Link] one's problems grow
-.05 withseekingadvice. Unfortunately, in worse,one is less likelyand able to compare
theotherroleareas,onlyone problem-focusedone's situationpositively withthatof others.
copingbehavioris present, thereby precluding Perhapsrespondents werethinking intermsof
a fuller picture of relationships among stressesof moderateintensity at workand in
problem-focused [Link] is marriage and in termsofmoreseverestresses
clear thatseekingadvice does not alwaysgo in financeand parenthood. If so, instrumental
hand-in-hand with active steps at problem- actioninworkandmarriage mayreflect a per-
solving. ceptionthatone has a problemthatcan be
Problem-focused copingstandsapartfrom correctedwiththe appropriate action;disci-
selectiveignoring andotherformsofcopingby plineand budgeting, in contrast,maybe re-
reinterpretation and [Link] be- sponsesto situationsthatare seen as getting
tweenthetwo sets of behaviorsare primarily [Link]-
negative,e.g., - .17 betweendirectactionand terpretation, thefunctions ofpositivecompari-
rewardsubstitution at work,- .10betweenpa- son requirecloserscrutiny.
rentaldisciplineand selectiveignoring, and The general impressionone draws from
- .15 betweennegotiation and passiveaccep- Table 1 is that,withineach rolearea, coping
tancein marriage. Some positivecorrelations, behaviorsare not stronglyrelatedto each
e.g., .18 betweenselectiveignoring and action [Link] closest to a coherentpatternis
at work,do martheneatnessof thispicture. formed bythemoderately low,butconsistently
Intuitively,one wouldexpectconsistent nega- positive,correlations betweenselectiveignor-
tive relationships betweenignoringand in- ingand otherbehaviorsthathave in common
strumental coping;takingactionto resolvea elementsofpassiveresignation or acceptance.
problemimpliesrecognizing thatit is serious, On theotherhand,a coherentpatternamong
whichis theoppositeofignoring itor deeming instrumental action,advice-seeking, and posi-
itinsignificant.
The dataare,forthemostpart, tivecomparisons does notappear.
consistent withthisintuition, butitis clearthat Coping across Role Areas. The results in

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
236 JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

Table 1 pertainto interrelationships among noring).Emotion-focused behaviorsin work

coping behaviors within each role area. and [Link]
Perhapscopingstyleswillappearin relation- analogousbehaviorsinparenthood forma sep-
shipsamongcopingbehaviorsindifferent role aratefactor,thisfactor(Factor 1) correlates
areas. For example,someonewho deals di- .31 withthework-marital factor(Factor4) in
rectlywitha problemat workmayalso takean the oblique [Link] as a whole,the
activeapproachto reducing orparental resultspointto a copingpatternthatis used
marital
[Link] examinethispossibility, correla- acrosssettings.2
tionswerecomputedamongall copingbehav- Problem-focused copinginworkandinmar-
iors in the areas of work,marriage, and par- riageformsFactor 3. In additionto instru-
[Link] werede- mentalaction,i.e., directactionin workand
leted fromthe analysis,therebyexcluding negotiation in marriage, positivecomparisons
thosewhoweresingle,unemployed, ornonpa- also load [Link] again, the analogous
[Link] behaviorsin parenthood, i.e., disciplineand
intheanalysisbecausetheywereaskedofonly positivecomparisons, forma separatefactor
a smallnumberof respondents who indicated (Factor5). The problem-focused-coping clus-
thattheywereundereconomicstress;includ- teris less coherentthantheemotion-focused-
ing the financialcoping behaviors in the copingcluster;thetwofactorscorrelateonly
analysisreduces the numberof cases with -.16. In addition,an inconsistency is appar-
completedata to 55, whichis too smallfor ent; positivecomparisonin parenthood loads
[Link] were 579 cases negatively on Factor5, whilepositivecompari-
withcompletedata on work,marital,and pa- son inworkand inmarriage load positively on
rentalcoping. Factor3.3
Table 2 presentsresultsof a factoranalysis Factor2 is advice-seeking. Unliketheother
of correlations [Link]- factors, behaviorin themaritalandtheparen-
tor 1 is definedby selectiveignoring,resigna- tal areas are [Link] an a prioribasis,
tion, and self-reassurancein parenthood; one wouldexpectadvice-seeking to relateto
emotion-focused behaviorsthushangtogether, otherformsof problem-focused coping,such
but in onlyone role. Factor4 also contains as foundin Factors3 and 5. Instead,advice-
emotion-focused behaviors,bothin work(re- seekingformsa separatefactor.Factor2 cor-
wardsubstitution andin relatesonly.05 Factor3 and .08 withFactor
andselectiveignoring)
marriage (passiveacceptanceand selectiveig- 5. Evidently, advice-seeking is independent of

TABLE 2. Factor Analysisof Coping in Three Role Areas

Factor
1 2 3 4 5
Parental Discipline -.028 .085 .122 .151 .518
Parental Advice-Seeking .047 .586 .046 - .101 .199
Parental Ignoring .873 - .046 - .098 - .134 - .115
Parental Comparisons -.038 -.083 .081 .115 -.317
Parental Resignation .333 - .054 - .105 .064 .067
Parental Reassurance .472 .062 .239 .130 .095
Work Reward Substitution .047 -.335 -.059 .428 .190
Work Action -.076 .257 .286 .048 -.067
Work-Ignoring .003 .021 - .030 .386 .020
Work Comparisons .063 .308 .421 - .059 - .139
Marital Advice-Seeking -.023 .615 -.101 .036 .086
Martial Negotiation -.092 -.118 .459 -.003 .065
Marital Passivity .136 .285 -.124 .452 -.103
Marital Ignoring .329 .062 .016 .478 - .206
Marital Comparisons .047 - .164 .553 - .154 - .012
Marital Emotional Discharge - .032 .392 -.115 .157 .073
Note: This analysis is based on 579 people who are married,employed, and parents.

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS AND COPING PATTERNS 237

otherinstrumental [Link] avoiddenial,eitherto selfor to [Link]

advicemaydiffer fromotherproblem-focusedcannotbe categorized neatlyintoactive,mas-
copingin its explicitly socialorientation. terful
[Link] is
A comparableanalysiswas conductedcon- consistent withthedata reported by Folkman
trolling forlevel of [Link] resultsdo not and Lazarus (1980), mostof whose respon-
contradictthose in Table 2. Seven factors dentsusedbothproblem- andemotion-focused
emerge,defined byparentalselectiveignoring, coping in varyingproportions over several
advice-seeking, parentalpositivecomparison, stressfulepisodes. The low correlations be-
denialin workand marriage (similarto Factor tweenmasteryand bothself-denial and non-
4), discipline, directactionatwork,andmarital disclosuresuggestthatrespondents inthepre-
negotiation andpositivecomparison (similarto sentsamplealso havethecapability to engage
Factor3). In thisanalysis,the different role inbothproblem- andemotion-focused coping.
areas becomeeven moredistinct. People who are highin self-denial are not
In sum,analysesofcopingacrossroleareas necessarilyhighin nondisclosure. One may
pointto conclusionsthatare similarto those recognizeand be concernedwithone's prob-
withineach role area. Selectiveignoring and lemswithout disclosingthemto others.A ten-
otherformsofemotion-focused copingare as- dencyto denyorminimize problems tooneself
sociatedwitheach otherwithin roleareasand, evidentlymust be distinguished fromone's
to somedegree,acrossroleareas. In contrast, tendencyto approachor avoid otherswhen
use of problem-focused copingis less consis- [Link] may be fruitful to
tent,as advice-seeking formsa factordistinct distinguish copingbehaviorsin termsof the
fromotherinstrumental actions. degreetowhichtheyinvolveseekinghelpfrom
othersversusactingindependently.
To examinefactorsaffecting use of coping
PersonalityCharacteristicsand behaviors,eachcopingbehaviorwas regressed
Coping Behaviors onto a set of independent variablesthatin-
cludedthebackground characteristics of age,
The precedingsectionexaminedrelation- education,income,and sex; thefourpersonal-
[Link] cor- itycharacteristics; and a measureofexposure
relationswere not uniformly large in mag- to [Link] per-
nitude,manywerein the.1 to .3 range,which formed separately within [Link]
is a typicalfinding forstudiesof behavioral 3 presentsresultsof theseanalyses.
consistency (Mischeland Peake, 1982).What- The findings in Table 3 showthatbothgen-
ever relationships do existamongcopingbe- eralpersonality variablesand thepresenceof
haviorsmayarisefromtheircommonrelation- stressful lifeconditions affectthefrequency of
shipto a moregeneralpersonality characteris- [Link] independent variableexercisesa
tic. [Link]-
Correlationsamong the four personality stead,each variableselectively affectsuse of
characteristics tendto be low. Masteryis un- some coping behaviorsand is unrelatedto
relatedto self-denial (r = .04)andtonondisclo- others. Several patternsemergethat merit
sure (r = -.12). In addition,nondisclosureand comment.
self-denial correlateonly.06. Self-esteem cor- Self-denialaffectsuse of selectiveignoring.
relatesnegligibly withself-denial (r = .04) and In all fourrole areas, thecoefficient forself-
withnondisclosure(r = -.11). The onlystrong denialis significant in predicting selectiveig-
relationship occursbetweenmasteryand self- [Link],people who are high in
esteem(r = .56).Highself-esteem mayprovide self-denial tendto use otheremotion-focused
theconfidence necessaryto takeactivesteps [Link] self-deniers use sub-
to masterthe environment, or, conversely, stitution of rewardsin work,resignation and
pastexperiences ofmastery mayproducehigh self-reassurance in parenthood,and passive
self-esteem. acceptanceinmarriage. In thefinancial realm,
The correlations suggestthatmasteryand however,self-denial does notaffectuse ofop-
denialare [Link] timistic faithor devaluationof money.
orientation of masterydo not simultaneously Nondisclosurealso affectscoping. Like

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
238 JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

TABLE 3. Regressions
ofCopingBehaviors
onPersonality
Characteristics
andStresses
within
EachRoleArea
A. Marital Coping (N = 1,246)
Independent Advice- Positive Passive Selective Emotional
Variables Seeking Negotiation Comparison Acceptance Ignoring Discharge
Mastery -.001 (-.008) .010 (.030 .013 (.046) -.042 (-.083)** -.068 (1.123)** -.011 (-.037)
Self-Denial -.005 (-.022) .016 (.037) .012 (.032) .073 (.109)** .138 (.187)** .009 (.022)
Self-Esteem .002 (.013) .023 (.077)* .012 (.045) -.006 (-.012) .001 (.001) -.007 (-.026)
Nondisclosure -.037 (-.130)** -.067 (-.119)** -.006 (-.012) .073 (.084)** .021 (.022) -.075 (.141)*
Marital Stress .024 (.236)** -.076 (-.369)** -.077 (-.434)** .134 (.423)** .076 (.220)** .057 (.298)**
Sex .172 (.128)** .100 (.037) .037 (.016) .033 (.008) .386 (.085)** .109 (.044)
Age -.008 (1.149)** -.008 (-.071)* -.010 (-.110)** .005 (.029) .026 (.140)** -.014 (-.135)**
Education .024 (.079)** .019 (.032) -.017 (-.033) -.001 (-.001) -.013 (-.013) -.001 (-.001)
Income -.000 (-.000) -.001 (-.005) .012 (.069)* -.012 (-.026) -.014 (-.040) .013 (.068)*
R2 .14 .21 .25 .24 .16 .16
B. Parental Coping (N =851)
Independent Advice- Positive Selective Self-
Variables Seeking Discipline Comparison Resignation Ignoring Reassurance
Mastery .002 (.007) .032 (.063) .058 (.150)** -.;77 (-.187)** -.068 (1.140)** -.042 (-.092)*
Self-Denial .004 (.011) .035 (.050) .015 (.029) .055 (.094)** .074 (.I10)** .102 (.158)**
Self-Esteem -.019 (-.089)* -.021 (-.045) .023 (.066) -.015 (-.014) -.044 (-.102)* -.024 (-.056)
Nondisclosure -.052 (1.124)** -.026 (-.028) -.012 (-.018) .012 (.017) -.008 (-.009) -.002 (-.002)
Parental Stress .043 (.188)** .124 (.253)** -.050 (-.134)** .028 (.071)* .013 (.028) .026 (.059)
Sex .303 (.146)** .063 (.014) .048 (.014) .411 (.114)** .227 (.054) .587 (.146)**
Age -.016 (-.144)** -.072 (-.309)** .014 (.081)* .041 (.214)** .045 (.201)** .016 (.074)*
Education .053 (.115)** .015 (.015) -.078 (-.105)** -.003 (-.004) -.015 (-.016) -.048 (-.054)
Income .002 (.016) -.017 (-.054) -.009 (-.039) -.016 (-.063) .014 (.049) .013 (.049)
R2 .15 .17 .07 .14 .10 .08
C. Financial Coping (N =352)
Independent Positive Devaluing Selective Optimistic
Variables Rumination Budgeting Comparison Money Ignoring Faith
Mastery -.044 (-.114) .053 (.108) -.021 (-.051) -.025 (-.085) -.008 (-.019) -.116 (-.330)**
Self-Denial .012 (.023) -.034 (-.050) -.053 (-.091) -.004 (-.009) .122 (.198)** .046 (.094)
Self-Esteem .010 (.027) -.068 (-.148)* -.023 (-.058) -.023 (-.084) .049 (.120) -.016 (-.049)
Nondisclosure -.046 (-.064) .054 (.060) -.047 (-.061) -.089 (-.164)** .098 (.120)* .039 (.060)
Financial Stress .121 (.216)** -.095 (-.131)* .046 (.075) .035 (.081) -.071 (.10)* .031 (.060)
Sex .224 (.060) -.682 (-.141)** .090 (.022) -.358 (-.124)* .457 (.105)* .299 (.087)
Age .006 (.048) - .030 (.178)** .014 (.097)* -.022 (-.216)** -.006 (-.038) .008 (.063)
Education .055 (.065) .096 (.088) .061 (.066) -.017 (-.027) .011 (.011) -.034 (-.044)
Income -.047 (-.126)* .093 (.195)** -.196 (-.482)** .004 (.014) .047 (.111)* -.000 (-.000)
R2 .11 .19 .28 .11 .10 .20
D. Occupational Coping (N = 1,026)
Reward Positive Direct Selective
Variables Substitution Comparison Action Ignoring
Mastery -.143 (1.173)** .055 (.114)** .034 (.082)* -.055 (-.081)*
Self-Denial .168 (.154)** .045 (.070)* .009 (.016) .058 (.065)*
Self-Esteem .015 (.019) .047 (.102)** .037 (.094)** -.008 (-.013)
Nondisclosure .119 (.085)** -.022 (-.027) -.074 (1.104)** .010 (.009)
Work Stress .025 (.045) -.039 (-.117)** .021 (.073)* .057 (.122)**
Sex -.237 (-.034) .004 (.001) -.155 (-.044) .886 (.156)**
Age .032 (.118)** -.037 (-.237)** -.003 (-.025) .013 (.060)
Education -.113 (-.079)** .008 (.009) .029 (.039) -.091 (-.078)*
Income -.131 (-.259)** .030 (.101)** .039 (.149)** -.044 (-. 105)**
R2 .20 .13 .08 .09
Note: Entries are [Link] in parenthesesare standardizedregres-
sion [Link] was coded male = 1 and female= 2. Income was coded in thousands of dollars.
*p<.05.
**p .01.

self-denial,
itsinfluenceis [Link]- For example,the effectof nondisclosure on
losureconsistently
affectsadvice-seeking.
The passiveacceptancein marriage can be under-
more people refrainfromdisclosingtheir stoodif one recallsthatthiscopingbehavior
problemsto others,theless theyseek advice involvesavoidingone's spouse and keeping
fordealingwithmaritalor parentalproblems. hurtfeelings to oneself,bothofwhicharecon-
Seekingadvice inherently requiresrevealing [Link],themore
personalproblemsto others. one avoids admittingproblemsto others,the
Nondisclosurealso affectsothercopingbe- less one takesdirectactionat workorengages
haviorsthathavean interpersonal component. in negotiationandemotional dischargeinmar-

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS AND COPING PATTERNS 239

[Link] ofthesecopingbehaviorsinvolves level of mastery, theless are such behaviors

[Link] workincludes used. Peoplewhoare highin mastery eschew
talkingover one's problemswith another; copingby denialor reinterpretation.
emotionaldischargereflectsyellingat one's Self-esteem has weak and inconsistent ef-
spouseto let offsteam;and negotiation obvi- fectson [Link], self-esteemis
[Link] re- forthemostpartunrelated toselectiveignoring
sults, along with those presented in the and relatedformsof emotion-focused coping.
foregoing, suggestthata generalcharacteristicPeople who have highself-esteem do notde-
of nondisclosure affectsthecopingbehaviors fensivelyprotecttheirfavorableself-evalu-
thatinvolvedealingwithotherpeople. ation throughdenial or distortion. They do
Self-denial and nondisclosure affect take directactionat workand negotiatein
emotion-focused [Link] thepersonality marriage, buttheybudgetless and do notuse
dimension of mastery shape the use of disciplinemorefrequently thanthosewhoare
problem-focused coping?Peoplewhoare high low in self-esteem. Takenas a whole,thefind-
in mastery do takedirectactionat work,and ingssuggestthatself-esteem is moreconsistent
theyshowa tendencyto budgettheirmoney witha problem-oriented approachto coping
[Link]-mastery individualsdo not, than with a defensive,repressive,coping
however,use parentaldisciplineor marital style,butthisconclusion mustremaintentative
negotiation morefrequently thanlow-masteryuntilcorroborated by further data.
individuals. Masterythusleadsto instrumental The resultsforthe fifthvariablelistedin
copingin the impersonalareas of workand each selectionof Table 3 showthe impactof
finance;masteryis unrelatedto problem- persistent stresseson copingin each area. In
focused coping in the interpersonal realm. general,thegreaterthestress,thegreaterthe
Perhaps more variationexists in people's frequencywithwhicha copingbehavioris
feelingsof controlover structural aspectsof used. Stresshas negativeeffects on budgeting,
theirenvironment thanexistsin theirfeelings negotiation, and [Link]
of controlover others' [Link] is, negativerelationshipsmay occur because
peoplemaygenerally feelthattheycan influ- some formsof copingbecomedifficult when
ence theactionsof others,suchas spouseor stressbecomes too severe. There comes a
children;only in extremesituationswould point,forexample,whennegotiation becomes
theyconsidera spouse or childto be out-of- futilein a dissolvingmaritalrelationship and
controlortotally Themastery whenbudgeting
uninfluenceable. becomesuselessbecausethere
scale maybe limitedto measuring perceived is too littlemoneyto budget.
competence ininstrumentally
manipulating the The last variableslistedin each sectionof
impersonal environment. Table 3 are sex, age, education,and income.
Masterydoes not affectadvice-seeking in The resultsheresupplement thosereportedby
marriage or [Link] Pearlinand Schooler(1978), who presented
is consistentwithmastery'shavinglittleimpact zero-ordercorrelationsbetween the back-
[Link] thepre- groundfactorsand coping behaviors. In-
on interpersonally-oriented
sentdata, advice-seeking was measuredwith troducingadditionalcontrolsinto the an-
respectto marriageand parenthoodbut not alysis weakens,but does not substantially
withrespectto workor [Link] theinher- reverse,thegeneralpatternfoundby Pearlin
entlyinterpersonal natureofadvice-seeking is and Schooler.
a crucialaspect,ratherthansomething special In termsof ascribedcharacteristics, results
abouttheroleareasofmarriage orparenthood, showthat,comparedtomen,womenmorefre-
thenfutureresearchshould show negligible quentlyuse selectiveignoringto deal with
relationshipsbetweenmasteryand advice- workandfinancial [Link] marriageandpar-
seekingforoccupationaland financialprob- enthood,womendo notuse thisbehaviormore
lems. oftenthando men; rather,theyseek advice
Masteryalso influencesselectiveignoring more oftenand use otherformsof passive
and the relatedemotion-focused copingbe- coping,such as resignation and passive ac-
haviors,suchas passiveacceptance,resigna- [Link] oftenseek advice
tion,and rewardsubstitution. The higherthe and less frequently engagein activecoping,

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
240 JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

suchas budgeting anddiscipline, thando their thata certainbehaviorbelongedina particular

juniors. Older people cope by using the category,such as eitherproblem-focused or
passive-reinterpretive behaviors associated emotion-focused. In contrast,thepresentre-
withselectiveignoring. searchallowedrelationships to emergefrom
The twoachievedcharacteristics, education thedata. Judgment entered,to be sure,in the
and income,haveweakereffects thansex and labelingofcopingfactorsas eitherproblem- or
age. More educatedpeople more frequentlyemotion-focused. Nevertheless, the combina-
seek advice,presumably becausetheyplace a tion of specific behaviors into broader
highvalue on expertisein solvingproblems. categorieswas based on patternsobtainedin
Incomehas itsmostconsistent impacton cop- thedata.
ing withwork-related [Link] who Thepatterns thatdidemergesuggestthatthe
have a higherincomemoreoftentake direct problem-versusemotion-dichotomy is too
actionandless oftenengagein selectiveignor- coarse. The patternof interrelationships was
ingandrewardsubstitution. Peoplewitha high morecomplexthana simplecontrastof two
incomearelikelytooccupypositions ofpower; [Link] be dis-
theycan changeunpleasantaspects of their tinguished. First,withineach rolearea, selec-
jobs and neednotturnawayfromconfrontingtive ignoring correlatedwithotherbehaviors
problemsdirectly. thatrepresentattempts toavoidproblems orto
reinterpret
problemsina morefavorable light.
This was the closest thing to a general
DISCUSSION emotion-focused styleto appearin the data.
Moreover, theseformsofcopinghadrelatively
The studyof copingis in an earlystageof highcorrelations acrossroleareas. Thisis es-
development. One of thefirsttasksfacingre- peciallytrueforcopingwithparentalandmar-
searchersin a newarea of studyis to classify [Link],selectiveignoring in
variations in thephenomenon of [Link] marriage correlated .28 withselectiveignoring
distinctionbetween problem-focusedand inparenthood and.24withselectiveignoring at
emotion-focused copingrepresents a firststep work;resignation and self-reassurance in par-
in developing a typology ofcopingbehaviors. enthoodcorrelated.15 and .21, respectively,
Makingthisdistinction raisesfurther issues. withpassiveacceptancein [Link] con-
In particular,are people consistent,across trast,no such relationships were presentfor
situationsandovertime,intheiruse ofcertain activeproblem-focused [Link] in
copingtechniques?Classifying differenttypes marriage correlated .01withparental discipline
ofcopingraisesthepossibility thatpeoplewill and .13 withtakingdirectactionat work;the
developpreferences and fixateon a particular lattertwobehaviorscorrelated-.02. In sum,
typeofcoping,whichtheywilluse todealwith analyses both withinand betweenncoping
a varietyof [Link] addition,classifying areassuggestthatselectiveignoring, inconcert
typesof copingraisesthepossibility thatthe withbehaviorssuch as passive acceptance,
antecedents of [Link] theextentthat reward substitution, resignation,and self-
generalpersonality characteristicsaffectuse of reassurance,forma reasonablycoherent clus-
specificcopingbehaviors,a patternof coping terof copingbehaviors.
mightemerge because general personality This set of behaviorsis morelimitedthana
factorscouldproduceconsistencies in theuse generalemotion-focused [Link]
of particular copingresponses. dischargein marriage,forexample,did not
The presentfindings shedlighton theseis- relatestrongly to behaviorsin this set. The
sues. The resultsrepresent one ofthefewem- responseofmaking favorable comparisons also
piricalexaminations of the interrelationships [Link] findings providesug-
[Link](Bil- gestive evidence for different subtypesof
lingsand Moos, 1981;Folkmanand Lazarus, emotion-focused coping.
1980),hasaggregated specificcopingbehaviors Copingbymakingpositivecomparisons pre-
intomoregeneralcategorieson the basis of sented surprising [Link] role
[Link] is, classifications area, positive comparisons related more
weremadeon thebasis of a prioriconsensus stronglyto active coping than to emotion-

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS AND COPING PATTERNS 241

[Link] addition,thefivepersonal- notuse sometypesofcopingto theexclusion

ityvariableshad negligible or inconsistent ef- [Link] emotion-focused behaviors
fectson theuse ofpositivecomparisons. Close correlatednegativelywith some problem-
inspection oftheitemscomprising thepositive focusedbehaviors,the correlations were,at
comparison factorsin each rolearea (see Ap- best,of moderatemagnitude. In thisrespect,
pendixB) suggeststworeasonsfortheseweak the results are consistentwith those of
[Link],some itemsreferto temporal Folkmanand Lazarus (1980),who foundthat
comparisons, whileothersdeal withinterper- onlya smallproportion oftheirsampleused a
sonalcomparisons. The antecedents and con- consistentmix of problem-and emotion-
sequentsof comparing oneselfto othersmay focusedresponsesin severalcopingepisodes.
be differentfromthoseofcomparing withone- Situational factorsappearto be moreinfluen-
selfat another [Link],andperhapsmore tialthanpersonality characteristicsin shaping
important,the itemsreferto the evaluation of theparticulars of thecopingprocess.
one's presentcircumstances, not to thefre- Whenexamining the effectsof personality
quency of [Link] the variableson copingbehaviors,thebasic pic-
othercopingitemsreferto howoftenan action turethatemergesis one ofspecificity ofinflu-
occurs,notto whether one's presentsituation ence. Each personalitycharacteristic influ-
is betteror worse thansome [Link] ences some behaviors,but not [Link]-
evaluativenatureofthecomparison itemsex- though thepattern ofeffects ofthefiveperson-
plainsthe negativerelationships betweende- alitycharacteristics was complex,it was not
gree of stressand positivecomparisonsthat [Link]-denial affected theuse
appear in Table 3. As stressbecomesmore ofcopingbehaviorsthatcomprised thecluster
intense,one's presentsituationlooks worse, of coping by passive acceptanceand rein-
comparedto the past or to [Link] future terpretation. To someextent,then,theuse of
research,measuresof positivecomparisons selectiveignoring and relatedbehaviorsmay
shouldrefertofrequency ofcomparing oneself arise froma generaltendencyto engagein
to others,or possiblyto choiceofcomparison self-denial. In contrast, nondisclosure affected
persons. use of advice-seeking and had a pattern ofef-
Problem-focused coping is not a unitary fectsdifferent fromthatof self-denial.
category. Particularly
noteworthy is thelackof Masteryaffectedproblem-focused coping
associationbetweenadvice-seeking and other onlyintheareasofworkandfinance;itsinflu-
instrumental [Link] mightexpect enceon instrumental actsinmarriage andpar-
thatadvice-seeking wouldbe an integral partof enthoodwas weak. Here again,the interper-
a coherentinstrumental copingstrategy, seek- sonal/impersonal distinctionappears. People
ingadviceformarital problems correlated - .05 mayhavedifferent perceptions oftheirability
withuse ofnegotiation, andseekingadvicefor to controlthe social and the nonsocialenvi-
parentalproblemscorrelated. .16 withuse of ronments. The itemsmeasuringmasteryap-
[Link] contrast,advice-seeking in mar- pearto lean towardinstrumental taskcompe-
riagecorrelated .44withadvice-seeking forpa- tence,ratherthantowardinterpersonal skill.
rentalproblems. Additionalitemsmeasuringperceivedinter-
The contrastbetweenadvice-seeking and personalskillmaybe foundto relateto negoti-
otherproblem-focused behaviorssuggestsa ation,discipline, advice-seeking, andotherso-
distinctionbetweenturning towardothersand cially orientedformsof coping. Problem-
turning [Link], somepeople focusedcopingthatdeals withinterpersonal
mayseek adviceand supportto helptacklea issues may have to be distinguished from
problem,but othersmayprefera self-reliantproblem-focused copingthatdeals withmore
and independent approachto [Link] impersonal problems.
researchcouldprofit fromfocusing directly on An understanding of copingis criticalfor
the distinctionbetween social and asocial progressin explaining reactionsto [Link]
copingbehaviors. findingsreportedhere suggestdistinctions
The findings argueagainstthe notionthat amongtypesofcopingthatmeritconsideration
people can be classifiedas eitherproblem- in [Link] addition,thefindings high-
focusedor emotion-focused [Link] lightthe importance of considering in detail

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
242 JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

how personality combinewith

characteristics logical reactions to unpleasant circumstances;
featuresof the situationto shape behavior. the latterare termed"strains." Others reverse
Coping,likeall behavior,is a productbothof the terminology,using "stress" to referto psy-
chological [Link] the presentpaper, stress
personaland of situational A thor-
influences. will referto environmentalfactorsthatcause a
oughunderstanding ofcopingwillthusfurther psychological reaction of distress.
our knowledgeof the reciprocalinfluenceof 2. The analysis was performedusingthe FACTOR
thepersonandthesituation (Bandura,1978),a program in SPSS. Principal-factorextraction
was used. The five factorsextractedeach have
topicofrelevanceforthebroaderfieldofper- eigenvalues greaterthan 1. The SPSS program
sonalityand social psychology. uses direct obliminfor oblique rotation.
3. Most of the correlationsamong the factorswere
NOTES near zero. In additionto the factorcorrelations
mentionedin the text, the only other correla-
1. There is no accepted terminologyin this area. tions that reached above .10 in absolute value
Some authors, e.g., LaRocco, House, and were those of - .12 (factors3 and 1), . 11 (factors
French (1980), use "stress" to referto psycho- 2 and 4), and -.15 (factors3 and 5).

APPENDIX A
Items ComprisingSelf-and InterpersonalDenial Scales

Factor 1 Factor 2
It is a signof weakness fora person to admitthathe has problems. .105 - .254
I usually tryto talk out my problemswith otherpeople. .123 .745
When thingsare going badly, I tend to show it ratherthan hold it
inside. .058 .320
It is difficultfor me to talk about myselfto otherpeople. .060 -.379
I am a personwho triesto tellhimselfthateverything is always O.K. .422 - .100
For me, laughingis a good way to keep fromfeelingbad. .629 .100
Most of my problems are just a state of mind. .313 -.025
As long as I keep smiling,difficultiesdon't get the best of me. .751 .065
I'm betteroffwhen I look only on the positive side of my life. .531 .005

APPENDIX B F. Selective Ignoring. How often do you (1)

Items ComprisingCoping Factors are not
Tell yourselfthat maritaldifficulties
important[.72]; (2) Try to overlook your
I. MARITAL COPING spouse's faults and pay attentiononly to
A. Seeking Advice. In the past year or so have good points [.49]; (3) Try to ignoredifficul-
you (1) Asked the advice of relativesabout ties by lookingonly at good things[.47]; (4)
gettingalong in marriage[.59]; (2) Asked for Keep so busy you don't have time to think
the advice of a friendor neighbor[.64]; (3) [.36]?
Gone to a doctor, counselor, or other pro-
fessional person for marriageadvice [.49]; II. PARENTAL COPING
(4) Read any books or magazines about get- A. Selective Ignoring. How often do you (1)
tingalong in marriage[.32]? Tell yourselfthat it is not really important
B. Emotional Discharge. How oftendo you (1) [.68]; (2) Justtryto ignorewhat's going on
Yell or shout to let offsteam [.64]; (2) Find [.57]; (3) Decide there's nothingyou can do
yourself thinking over marital problems to change things[.50]; (4) Try to notice only
[- .23]? the good things[.35]?
C. Positive Comparisons. (1) How would you B. Discipline. How oftendo you (1) Take away
compare yourmarriageto thatof mostother a privilege[.83]; (2) Threaten some kind of
people like yourself:better,the same, less punishment[.77];' (3) Scold your children
good [.76]; (2) Withtime,does yourmarriage [.74]?
getbetter,staythe same, getless good [.53]? C. [Link] the past year or so, have
D. Negotiation. How oftendo you (1) Try to you (1) Asked for the advice of friendsor
finda faircompromisein marriageproblems neighbors concerning difficultiesin your
[.58]; (2) Sit down and talkthingsout [.54]? children's behavior [.74]; (2) Asked for the
E. Passive Acceptance. How oftendo you (1) advice of a relative[.69]; (3) Read any books
Justkeep hurtfeelingsto yourself[.50]; (2) or magazines in recentmonthsabout raising
Give in more than halfway [.43]; (3) Keep children[.40]; (4) Asked forthe advice of a
out of yourspouse's way fora while [.38]; (4) doctor,teacher,or otherprofessionalperson
Wait fortimeto remedythe difficulty [.34]? [.39]?

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS AND COPING PATTERNS 243

D. Self-Reassurance. How often do you (1) as it is because there's nothingI can do to

Look around at other parents to see how change it [.46]; (4) Time solves most prob-
much betteroffyou are than they [.67]; (2) lems on myjob [.37]; (5) As soon as I leave
Remind yourselfthatthingscould be worse work I put it out of my mind [.36]?
[.51]; (3) Think that it's behavior that they B. Positive Comparisons. Would you say that
will just outgrow [.33]? your work life is better,the same, or worse
E. Resignation. How stronglydo you agree or than (1) It was about a year ago [.74]; (2) It
disagree (1) The way mychildrenare turning will be a year fromnow [.56]; (3) The jobs of
out depends on theirinnernatureand there most other people you know [.45]?
is littleI can do about it [.71]; (2) There is, C. Direct Action. When you have difficulties in
only so much I can do as a parentand after your work situation,how oftendo you (1)
that I just accept my children as they are Take some action to get ridof them[.80]; (2)
[.47]? Talk to others to finda solution [.49]?
F. Positive Comparisons. (1) As timegoes by, D. Selective Ignoring. When you have difficul-
has being a parentgenerallybecome easier, ties in your work situuation,how oftendo
more difficult,or stayed the same [.77]; (2) you (1) Justwaitfora difficulty to workitself
Would you guess thatin the next year or so out [.61]; (2) Tell yourselfthatdifficultiesin
being a parentwill become easier, more dif- your work are not importantin your life
ficult,or stay the same [.60]? [.60]; (3) Try to pay attentiononly to your
I duties in order to overlook difficultiesin
III. FINANCIAL COPING your work situation[.38]; (4) Remind your-
A. Budgeting. How stronglydo you agree or self that for everythingbad there is also
disagree that (1) We live on a strictbudget somethinggood [.38]?
[.81]; (2) I am very careful how I spend Note: Numbers in bracketsare factor loadings.
money [.71]; (3) I limitwhatI buy so I can be
secure [.66]? REFERENCES
B. Positive Comparisons. Would you say your
familyincome is higher,- lower, or about the Bandura, A.
same as (1) People withthe same education 1978 "The self-system in reciprocal deter-
as yours [.66]; (2) Most of yourfriends[.58]; minism."' American Psychologist
(3) Most of your relatives [.54]; (4) Most of 33:344-58.
your neighbors[.49]? Billings,A. C., and R. H. Moos
C. Selective Ignoring. When you are short of 1981 "The role of coping responses and social
money,how oftendo you (1) Concentrateon resources in attenuatingthe stress of life
the more importantthingsin life [.59]; (2) events." Journal of Behavioral Medicine
Notice people aroundwho are worse offthan 4:139-57.
you [.53]; (3) Tell yourselfthat money isn't Byrne, D.
worthgettingupset about [.45]? 1964 "Repression-sensitizationas a dimension
D. Devaluation of Money. (1) How oftendo you of personality."Pp. 169-220 in Brendan A.
borrow money [.47]; (2) How stronglydo Maher (ed.), Progress in ExerimentalPer-
you agree or disagree thatfinancialsuccess sonalityResearch, Vol. 1. New York: Aca-
does not interestme. [.41]? demic Press.
E. OptimisticFaith. How oftendo you (1) Just Folkman, S., and R. S. Lazarus
sit back and wait forthingsto work out by 1980 "An analysis of coping in a middle-aged
themselves [.68]; (2) Accept the money communitysample." Journalof Health and
pinch because there's nothingyou can do Social Behavior 21:219-39.
about it [.46]? Johnson,J. H., and I. G. Sarason
F. Rumination. (1) Duringa typicalweek, how 1978 "Life stress, depression, and anxiety:
often are money problems on your mind Internal-externalcontrol as a moderator
[.53]; (2) How stronglydo you agree or dis- variable." Journal of Psychosomatic Re-
agree that my money never seems to be search 22:205-08.
enough for my wants [.45]; (3) How does Kobasa, S. C.
your present standardof livingcompare to 1979 "Stressful life events, personality, and
the way you were able to live about a year health." Journalof Personalityand Social
ago: much better, about the same, much Psychology37: 1-11.
worse [.44]? LaRocco, J. M., J. S. House, and J. R. P. FrenchJr.
1980 "Social support, occupational stress, and
IV. WORK COPING health." Journalof Health and Social Be-
A. Substitutionof Rewards. How stronglydo havior 21:202-18.
you agree or disagree that(I) The most im- Lefcourt,HerbertM.
portantthingabout myjob is thatit provides 1976 Locus of Control: Current Trends in
me withthe thingsI need in life [.61]; (2) I Theory and Research. New York: Wiley.
can putup witha lot of myjob as longas the Mischel, W., and P. Peake
pay is good [.57]; (3) I have to accept myjob 1982 "In search of consistency: Measure for

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions
244 JOURNAL OF HEALTH AND SOCIAL BEHAVIOR

measure." Pp. 187-207 in Mark P. Zanna, Rotter,J. B.

E. Tory Higgins, and C. Peter Herman 1966 "Generalized expectancies forinternalver-
(eds.), Consistency in Social Behavior. sus external control of reinforcement."
Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associ- Psychological Monographs 80 (Whole No.
ates. 609).
Pearlin, L. I., and J. S. Johnson Sandler, I. N., and B. Lakey
1977 "Marital status, life-strains,and depres- 1982 "Locus of control as a stress moderator:
sion." American Sociological Review The role of control perceptionsand social
42:704-15. support." AmericanJournalof Community
Pearlin, L. I. and C. Schooler Psychology 10:65-80.
1978 "The structure of coping.'" Journal of Wheaton, B.
Health and Social Behavior 19:1-21. 1982 "A comparisonof the moderatingeffectsof
Pearlin, L. I., M. A. Leiberman, E. G. Menaghan, personal coping resources on the impactof
and J. T. Mullan exposure to stress in two groups." Journal
1981 "The stressprocess." Journalof Health and of CommunityPsychology 10:293-311.
Social Behavior 22:337-56. Zanna, M. P., and J. M. Olson
Rosenberg, Morris 1982 "Individual differencesin attitudinalrela-
1965 Society and the Adolescent Self-Image. tions." Pp. 75-103 in Mark P. Zanna, E.
Princeton:PrincetonUniversityPress. Tory Higgins,and C. Peter Herman (eds.),
1979 Conceiving the Self. New York: Basic Consistencyin Social Behavior. Hillsdale,
Books. NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

This content downloaded from [Link] on Wed, 18 Nov 2015 [Link] UTC
All use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions