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Understanding Coping Mechanisms

Updated: Apr 17



When you feel stressed, how do you behave? Take a walk? Shout at someone? Watch a TV series?


These thoughts we have and actions we take to reduce stress are called coping mechanisms.


Mechanisms that build emotional resilience or manage stress over the long-term are healthy, or adaptive. In contrast, mechanisms that reduce the symptoms of stress in the short-term, but worsen them in the long-term and negatively affect your finances, physical health, relationships and more, are unhealthy, or maladaptive.


What coping styles do you use?


Traditionally, social science researchers group coping mechanisms into two broad styles, based on what we aim to achieve through them.


  1. Problem-focused coping seeks to address the source of stress. Examples include:

    1. Adaptive: Creating study plans after receiving a low score for an exam. Talking to someone for advice on how to resolve your problems.

    2. Maladaptive: Overanalyzing a mistake you made until you criticize yourself. Avoiding conflict by isolating yourself from your loved one.


  1. Emotion-focused coping seeks to alleviate negative feelings associated with stress. Examples include:

    1. Adaptive: Journaling to understand your emotions. Reframing a crisis to create meaning from it. Relieving stress by exercising.

    2. Maladaptive: Taking cigarettes or alcohol to numb your feelings. Overspending to distract yourself with thrill. 


How do you move away from unhealthy coping mechanisms and develop healthy ones?


Therapists can help you with this process, especially if you notice your coping mechanisms worsen your day-to-day life or relationships. 


But if counseling’s unavailable to you, consider reflecting on the following:


  1. Understand your triggers and responses. List your stressors and the coping mechanisms you use per stressor. For each mechanism, is it problem-focused or emotion-focused? Adaptive or maladaptive?


  1. Honor your past needs. Your coping mechanism may have allowed you to survive stressful situations once. Accept that, but also accept that it may now damage more than help you.


  1. Equip yourself with knowledge of adaptive coping strategies. For each stressor you’re using a harmful coping mechanism for, what action or mental framework can you replace it with? Examples to help you get started:

    1. Learn deep relaxation methods, such as yoga and progressive muscle relaxation, among other positive coping strategies.

    2. Find out where your stress response lies along the Meaning-Centered Coping Scale and how to improve your score.

    3. Understand cognitive distortions, such as emotional reasoning and disqualifying positives, and techniques to combat them.


Written by: Tze Min


02/2024


References

Ackerman, C. Cognitive Distortions: 22 Examples & Worksheets (& PDF). Positive Psychology (2017). https://positivepsychology.com/cognitive-distortions.


Carreno, D., Eisenbeck, N. Meaning-Centered Coping Scale (MCCS) (2020). https://drdavidcarreno.com/investigacion/meaning-centered-coping-scale-mccs.


Carreno, D., Eisenbeck, N., Pérez-Escobar, J. Meaning-Centered Coping in the Era of COVID-19: Direct and Moderating Effects on Depression, Anxiety, and Stress. Frontiers in Psychology 12 (2021). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.648383.


Johnston, A. Eating in the Light of the Moon: How Women Can Transform Their Relationships with Food Through Myth, Metaphor, and Storytelling. Gurze Books (2024). https://dranitajohnston.com/eating-in-the-light-of-the-moon.


Stanisławski, K. The Coping Circumplex Model: An Integrative Model of the Structure of Coping With Stress. Frontiers in Psychology 10 (2019). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00694. 


Thompson RJ, Mata J, Jaeggi SM, Buschkuehl M, Jonides J, Gotlib IH. Maladaptive coping, adaptive coping, and depressive symptoms: variations across age and depressive state. Behav Res Ther. 2010 Jun;48(6):459-66. doi: 10.1016/j.brat.2010.01.007. Epub 2010 Feb 10. PMID: 20211463; PMCID: PMC2872051. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2872051. 


Wald, S. Changing an Unhealthy Coping Mechanism. GROW Counseling (2020). https://growcounseling.com/changing-coping-mechanism.


Wilson, C. Healthy Coping Mechanisms: 9 Adaptive Strategies to Try. Positive Psychology (2023). https://positivepsychology.com/healthy-coping-mechanisms.


Wu, Y., Yu, W., Wu, X. et al. Psychological resilience and positive coping styles among Chinese undergraduate students: a cross-sectional study. BMC Psychol 8, 79 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-020-00444-y.


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