Coping with stress is part of ordinary life. Coping styles influence many aspects of life—relationships, work, physical health, and psychological health. It may be helpful to learn and educate yourself about beneficial ways to cope. What is good coping in one situation may not be helpful for another type of stressful event. Coping encompasses conscious actions or behaviors for dealing with stressful encounters.

Two pioneers in coping research are Lazarus and Folkman. They uncovered two styles of coping—problem-focused and emotion-focused. In problem-focused coping, people look at the distressful problem to discern its cause and decide how to manage it before taking action. In emotion-focused coping people use emotional reactions to cope with their problems. Folkman and Lazarus find both personality factors and coping processes used contribute to how people manage.

Pearlin and Schooler examined personality characteristics. They discovered people’s personalities helped them in situations where they had little control over the situation, like in their work environment. In circumstances of greater control, as in their marriages, it was people’s........

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