Learning to cope

Question 1

How do we develop our coping capabilities?

two major functions of coping:

Answer 1

regulating stressful emotions

altering the person–environment relation causing the distress

Question 2

Emotional reactions to stressors
Developmental perspective:
Temperament
Conditioning (behaviour)
and 2 others?

Answer 2

Emotional dev

Cognitive dev

Question 3

Temperament is generally assumed to be innate but personality is a collection of:

Answer 3

Behaviours 
Acquired/learned habits
Emotions 
Shaped through social relationships
Patterns of thought
Product of cognitive development

Question 4

Acquisition of Behaviours

Children acquire healthy/unhealthy habits

Answer 4

Classical conditioning

Operant conditioning

Social learning theory

Question 5

Learning coping behaviours

How we learn depends on:

Answer 5

Genetics/innate
Style of parenting
Socioeconomic and other environmental factors

Poor coping strategies often associated with unhealthy habits
Indirect impact on health

Socialisation patterns also have physiological implications (Monti et al, 2014)
Direct impact on cardiovascular and immune system

Question 6

We all share the same basic emotions but how we learn to regulate those emotions depends upon our upbringing
what dev is this?

Answer 6

Emotional development

Question 7

Bowlby 1969, 1973

Theory concerns understanding the functions of a close bond with an attachment figure

Answer 7

Attachment theory

Question 8

Attachment style in adults:
which style are they:
1. Hyper-activation in the face of threat
2. a pattern of deactivation in response to threat
3. the combination oflow anxiety and low avoidance

Answer 8

1. anxious attachment
2. attachment avoidance
3. attachment security

Question 9

Attachment theory shown to predict:

Answer 9

whether and how people seek support from close others
ability to provide comfort and reassurance when their partner needs it

explanatory power remarkably broad and consistent.

Question 10

Implications of attachment style on patterns of health and illness  Feeney (2000)
Secure attachment:
Insecure:
--> avoidant 
--> ambivalent

Answer 10

Secure attachment
Large range of coping strategies

Insecure
Seek short term ‘fixes’ which can create long term problems
Avoidant
Deny or suppress problems (emotions)

Ambivalent
Attention seeking

Question 11

Development of stress regulation systems 
affected by early family life
Infants learn to form ties with others;
emotion-regulation skills
social skills

Answer 11

In family environments where the information from others is not soothing and comforting, these vital skills may be deficient.

Question 12

Early environment, emotions, responses to stress and health - Taylor et al (2004).
Harsh family environment is associated with risky health behaviours in adulthood:

Answer 12

substance abuse
risky sexual behaviour
poor diet
lack of exercise
other risk-related behaviours 

“Risky families”
lacking in nurturance, characterized instead by overt conflict and aggression; by a cold, unaffectionate interaction style; or by neglect.

Question 13

Early environment, emotions, responses to stress and health - Taylor et al (2004)

socio-economic status

Genetics

Answer 13

Socio-economic status (SES)
Simply being in a lower socio-economic group is stressful

Adverse effect on parenting/relationships
Child is directly exposed to stress – more at risk of mistreatment

Genetics
Shared genetic inheritance can contribute to negative emotional states

Question 14

Beliefs are constructed through interaction with the world including other people

Genetics may impact on propensity to learn but thought processes are constructed through experience

Learn through self discovery
Learn through shared experience
Adaptation of adult to suit child’s level of skill
Scaffolding
Perspective taking

Answer 14

Cognitive development