Coping strategies

The German Coping Questionnaire for children and adolescents (Stressverarbeitungsfragebogen für Kinder und Jugendliche, SVF-KJ) by Hampel et al. (2001) is used to assess coping strategies. Coping responses are answered in relation to two individually generated common stressors: an interpersonal stress situation exemplary described by a conflict with peers or malicious gossip expressed by peers, and an academic stress situation exemplified by taking a difficult exam or dealing with too much homework. Nine different coping strategies can be assessed, represented by four items each, resulting in 36 different coping responses for each stress domain. Emotion-focused and problem-focused coping strategies measured by the SVF-KJ. Emotion-focused coping comprised of minimization (e.g., I say to myself:

It is not serious) and distraction/recreation (e.g., I am playing something). Problem-focused coping consisted of situation control (e.g., I try to figure out, what the problem

is), positive self-instructions (e.g., I say to myself: I can make it), and social support (e.g., I am asking for somebody’s advice). In addition, 4 subtests represented the maladaptive coping style, composed by passive avoidance (e.g., I’d like to stay in bed), rumination (e.g., the situation rushes into my mind over and over again), resignation (e.g., I want to give up), and aggression (e.g., I’m getting a bad temper). Participants has to chose on a 5-point scale (0 =not at all, 4 =in any case) the likelihood for each coping response. Figure 4.3.showed the structure of SVF-KJ.

Structural design of SVF-KJ by Hampel et al, (2001).

Figure 4.3: Structure of the coping questionnaire for children and adolescents (SVF-KJ; Modified from Hampel et al, 2001, p. 29)

As mentioned before Hampel et al. (2001) developed and validate SVF-KJ for the assessment of coping strategies in German and Austrian children and adolescence aged between 8 and 13 years. Five stress reducing and four stress enhancing strategies were measured, each represented by four items. Items assessed in conjunction with a fictitious school achievement-related and a social stressful encounter. The total item pool used by Hampel et al. contained 72 coping items. A total of n= 1123 pupils were

Other adolescents are bothering me and I do feel excited

Adaptive coping Maladaptive

coping

Passive avoidance Rumination Resignation Emotion

focused

Problem focused

Minimization Distraction

Situation control Seeking social support Positive self-instruction

examined to evaluate standardized measures and psychometric properties. Item and scale analyses revealed sufficient internal consistencies and retest reliabilities, respectively. Item assignment to subscales confirmed by principal component analyses.

In addition, the nine subscales were assigned to three components by factor analyses:

emotion-focused coping (minimization, distraction), problem-focused coping (situation control, positive self-instructions, need of social support), and maladaptive coping (passive avoidance tendencies, worrying, resignation, aggression).

Analyses of correlations showed reasonable discriminated associations of subscales.

Additionally criterion-oriented validity supported by preliminary results. Thus, the results by Hampel et al. (2001) suggested that the SVF-KJ was a reliable and valid self-report measure of coping The German version was used for German and Austrian children and adolescence,. For Asian participants an English version was administered also developed by Hampel and Peterman (2005).

Table 4.5.2.The SVF-KJ Subscales as used in the Current Study Meta-strategy Coping style/subscales Description Problem-focused

coping

Situation control e.g., I’m making a plan to fix the problem

Positive self-instruction e.g., I say to myself: I’ll get that under control Social support e.g., I’m asking somebody, what to do Emotion-focused

coping

Minimization e.g., I say to myself: It isn’t as bad as all that

Distraction/recreation e.g., I’m reading something, that’s fun) Maladaptive coping Passive avoidance e.g., I’d like to stay away from the situation

Rumination .g., I keep on worrying and thinking about the situation

Resignation e.g., I keep in mind: Whatever I do is really useless

Aggression e.g., I start quarrelling with somebody, who bumped into me

4.5.2.1. Operational definitions of SVF-KJ subscales:

Emotion-Focused Coping: Emotion-focused coping is an effort to manage or regulate stress related emotional responses.

Minimization: describes cognitive efforts to detach one’s self and to minimize the significance of the situation.

Distraction: describes wishful thinking and behavioral efforts to escape or avoid the problem.

Problem-focused coping: Problem-focused coping involves efforts to actively change the person-environment relationship that is causing stress.

Situation control: describes deliberate problem-focused efforts to alter the situation (coupled with an analytic approach to solving the problem.

Positive self-instructions: describes efforts to create positive meaning by focusing on personal growth.

Social support: describes efforts to seek informational support, tangible support and emotional support.

Maladaptive coping:

Passive avoidance/Rumination: refers to any action designed to prevent the occurrence of or to stop feeling an uncomfortable emotion, such as fear, sadness, or shame. For example, a person may try to avoid an emotion with substances or dissociation.

Resignation: Refers to giving up, or withdrawing effort from, the attempt to attain the goal with which the stressor is interfering accepting the fact that the stressful event has occurred and is real

Aggression: Refers to an increased awareness of one's emotional distress, and a concomitant tendency to ventilate or discharge those feelings.

4.5.3. Reynolds´ Adolescent Adjustment Screening Inventory (Emotional and behavioral problems, (RAASI)

The German and English versions of the Reynolds´ Adolescent Adjustment Screening Inventory (RAASI) were administered to assess self-reported emotional and behavioral problems (Hampel & Petermann, 2005c; Reynolds, 2001). The RAASI consists of the following 4 subscales represented by 32 items: antisocial behavior (e.g., I broke the rules at school or at home), anger control problems (e.g., I lost my temper), emotional distress (e.g., I felt depressed or sad), and negative self (e.g., I felt good about myself).

In accordance to Reynolds, all items measure positive self but the raw scores are inverted for further statistical analyses. Adolescents indicate the frequency of each behavior or mood during the last 6 months on a 3-point Likert scale (0 =never or almost never, 1 =sometimes, 2 =nearly all the time). A good reliability and validity has been demonstrated for the RAASI (Reynolds, 2001).

RAASI have four scales: Antisocial Behavior (AB), Anger Control Problems (AC), Emotional Distress (ED), and Positive Self (PS). It also yields a Total Adjustment score (AdjT). The raw score to T-score conversions for total standardization sample, gender, age group, and gender-by-age group was possible. Reliability coefficients range from .81-.88 for the AB, AC, and ED scales, .71 for PS and .91 for adjusted total score. Test-retest reliability ranges from .83-.89.RAASI have moderate to strong correlations between RAASI scales and domain-related APS and MMPI scales.

Figure 4.4 an overview of RAASI subscales (after Reynolds, 2000 p.5)

Table 4.5.3.TheRASSI Subscales as used in the Current Study

Meta-strategy/Domain Subscales Description

Externalisation Antisocial behavior I used drugs or alcohol I broke the rules at school or at home

Anger control problem I argued with my teachers or parents

I lost my temper Internalisation Emotional distress I was very lonely

I felt nervous

Negative self I felt good about myself I felt comfortable meeting new people

Externalisation Internalisation

Aggressive behavior, Anger control problems

Emotional distress, Postive self

RAASI total adjustment score Psychological Adjustment

4.5.3.1. Operational definitions of RAASI subscales

Aggressive/antisocial behavior:

This scale included Alcohol and drug abuse or rule violations and problems at home, at school or at work.

Anger control problems:

Problematic behaviors and anger resulting from practices that are directed against others such as to lose temper or dispute with parents or teachers.

Emotional distress:

The items capture negative emotional states such as anxiety, loneliness, sadness, and worries about the future. In addition, somatic symptoms such as difficulty in concentrating and falling asleep can be determined.

Positive self: It includes aspects of self-consciousness and social behavior.

4.5.4 Personality styles

Personality traits measured by FFFK-S personality trait questionnaire (Painsi, 2003).

The 54-item short version of the California Child Q-Set was adapted into German (Göttert & Asendorpf, 1989, cited after Asendorpf & Van Aken, 2003), provided a Q-sort description of the child according to a fixed, nine-point distribution, ranging from

‘extremely uncharacteristic’ to ‘extremely characteristic’. The Big Five scale comprised of the following traits: extraversion, neuroticism, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness.