Adolescent coping with everyday stressors: A seven-nation study of youth from central, eastern, southern, and northern Europe

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Authors

GELHAAR Tim SEIFFKE-KRENKE Inge BORGE Anna CICOGNANI Elvira CUNHA Madalena LONCARIC Darko MACEK Petr STEINHAUSEN Hans-Christoph WINKLER METZKE Christa

Year of publication 2007
Type Article in Periodical
Magazine / Source European Journal of Developmental Psychology
MU Faculty or unit

Faculty of Social Studies

Citation
Field Psychology
Keywords adolescence; coping; cross-national study
Description The present study compares problem-specific coping strategies and coping styles of European adolescents from seven nations. The sample consisted of 3031 adolescent participants, aged 11 to 20, from Croatia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Italy, Norway, Portugal, and Switzerland. The adolescents completed the Coping Across Situations Questionnaire (CASQ) by indicating which coping strategies (from 20 alternatives) they usually employed in dealing with age-specific problems (covering 8 different domains). The strategies can be collapsed to three coping styles: active coping, internal coping, and withdrawal. Results show that adolescents from all seven nations predominantly employed functional forms of coping, i.e., active coping and internal coping. In addition, the pattern of frequently and rarely applied coping strategies was similar across cultures. Differences in coping style were revealed for some, but not all problem domains, suggesting that cross-cultural similarity in coping exists for specific stressors. Problem-specific analyses helped to clarify where cultural influence is most distinct. Whereas cultural diversity was highest for coping with job-related problems, coping with self- and future-related problems was highly similar among adolescents from all the nations. Despite the considerable traditional, educational, and economic differences among the cultures investigated, the similarities in coping behaviour were impressive. Explanations for cultural universals and differences in adolescent coping are discussed.
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