Coping with Stress and Illness II

Purpose: To present the findings of an in-depth literature review.

Background: Chronic diseases have now replaced infectious diseases in early life as the major cause of death in western countries. Understanding how people cope with illness is therefore now more important than ever. Over the past three decades there has been considerable research into the individual and situational determinants of coping.

Method: Literature search.

Key Points: There are many areas of conflict in the coping literature. For example, some researchers have reported that individuals’ preferred modes of coping are rigid and resistant to change, whereas others report that individuals cope flexibly, applying different coping strategies to different stressful situations. Findings appear very fragmented and little is known about the

ways in which various factors interact.

Conclusions: The aim of future research should be to integrate and apply the knowledge we have obtained from the past three decades of coping research. In order to progress from our current

state of knowledge it will be necessary to utilise experimental designs that allow the measurement and analysis of many different variables. As many researchers have hinted at a moderating or mediating effect of situational or individual variables on coping, further research is needed to test directional hypotheses. Methods of targeting barriers to effective coping need to be identified and translated into practical coping interventions