Strategies for coping with stress as predictors of mental health

Abstract

Problem Statement: According to the relevant literature, strategies for coping with stress affect adolescent’s mental and physical health, school attendance and adaptation, academic achievement. If strategies for coping with stress suggested by Csikszentmihalyi are taught to adolescents, a more effective use of psychic energy and thus an increase in subjective experience quality can be achieved.

Purpose of the Study: The aim of this study is to examine whether strategies coping with stress based on the Flow Theory predict adolescents’ mental health to a significant level.

Method:  The study was conducted on a total of 119 ninth grade students (61 females and 58 males) aged 14-17 in a public high school in Ankara (in 2005-2006). The predictor variables of the study, the subscales of the Strategies for Coping with Stress Scale (SCSS), were struggle (S), personal control (PC), and active/effective contact with the environment (ACE). SCSS was developed based on Csikszentmihalyi’s flow theory. The predicted variables of the study were the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) whose subscales of Turkish form were anxiety, depression, negative self, hostility and somatization. In the study, multiple linear regression analysis was used.

Findings and Results: There were correlations ranging from ? =-.65 p<.001, R2 =.39  to ?=.30 P<.05, R2 =.07 between the subscales of SCSS and the subscales of BSI. Most correlation coefficients were negative as expected. Moreover, the regression models established between predicted and predictor variables were significant at p<.001 level excluding somatization. The most powerful predictor of mental health is the ACE strategy of coping with stress. The findings especially about ACE support the strategy of “focusing attention on the world”, which Csikszentmihalyi suggests as an effective strategy.

Conclusions and Recommendations: The results depict that as the levels of adolescents’ stress coping strategies decrease, their psychological symptoms increase. These results support Csikszentmihalyi’s opinions on coping with stress and other relevant literature. Psychological help experts can control adolescents’ mental health and raise the quality of their subjective experiences by teaching them strategies of SCSS.