Mark H. Anshel

Coping Styles Among Adolescent Competitive Athletes

The use of approach and avoidance coping styles and task-focused and emotion-focused coping strategies in competitive sport was explored. Four hundred twenty-one adolescent males from New South Wales, Australia, who were currently competing in team sports indicated their usual responses to each of 8 acute stressors commonly experienced in sport, using a 128-item inventory. The reliability coefficient (Cronbachs alpha) for each stressor ranged from .81 to .92. Twenty-six of the original 128 items on the inventory were retained, on the basis of factor analysis. Correlations between stressors indicated that coping styles were a function of type of stressor, providing support for the transactional model. Goodness of fit was high (.87). The present results partially support the construct of coping style among adolescent-aged sports competitors.

Sources of acute competitive stress and use of coping strategies as a function of age and gender

Abstract The main purpose of this investigation was to examine sources of acute stress and related coping processes following stressful events in competitive sport for 65 adult (37 males and 28 females), and 74 adolescent (39 males and 35 females) athletes. The sources of intense acute stress and concomitant “typical” coping responses following acute Stressors were identified. MANOVA indicated that stress intensity was a function of the type of stressful event. For example, males and adults experienced significantly higher acute stress intensity than females and adolescents, respectively, following performance-related Stressors (e.g., making a physical or mental error). However, females reported higher stress intensity than males for the Stressor, social evaluation; adolescents were more stressed than adults due to events related to the actions of others (e.g., coach and parents hassling or criticizing, spectators booing). Chi-square analyses indicated significant age and gender differences in the frequency with which selected coping strategies were used as a function of the Stressor. For example, males preferred problem-focused coping and females used emotionfocused coping after the Stressors, experiencing pain and injury, being intimidated by opponents, and parental criticism. However, emotion-focused coping was more common among adolescent males than adolescent females in response to a cheating opponent. Age, gender, and characteristics about the stressful event, supporting the transactional coping model, should jointly be taken into consideration when investigating the coping process in sport. Implications of these results include the need for coaches and parents to be cautious in their communication style when providing critical feedback on performance. In addition, since younger athletes use maladaptive coping skills more often than older-aged competitors, they are more susceptible to both acute and chronic forms of stress in sport. Examining the manner in which the coping process changes from adolescence to adulthood following stressful events in competitive sport clearly warrants further study.

Coping Style Following Acute Stress in Competitive Sport

Abstract The purpose of this study was to ascertain coping styles among competitive athletes in response to various acute stressors. Specifically, the authors used a 134-item survey to measure approach and avoidance coping styles, with task-focused and emotion-focused coping tendencies nested hierarchically as subdimensions under each. Australian and U.S. college-aged participants indicated the extent to which they used approach, avoidance, task-focused, and emotion-focused coping strategies (a 4-factor model) in response to selected acute stressors experienced during sport competition. The authors computed confirmatory factor analysis to test the theoretically driven model. The criterion loading of .30 and above for each of the factors reduced the survey to 65 items. Findings indicated stronger links between the 2 approach constructs of task- and emotion-focused coping than between the 2 avoidance constructs of those subdimensions. The goodness-of-fit indices for the 4-factor model were 0.58 and 0.57 for Australian and U.S. samples, respectively, and .71 overall. Concomitant low correlations between the 2 approach (0.18) and the 2 avoidance dimensions (0.43) reflected relatively high residuals between stressors. In general, psychometric analyses suggest that coping style may be more prevalent in some situations than others, lending partial support for the transactional model of coping.

The Disconnected Values Model Improves Mental Well-Being and Fitness in an Employee Wellness Program

This study examined the effect of a 10-week wellness program on changes in physical fitness and mental well-being. The conceptual framework for this study was the Disconnected Values Model (DVM). According to the DVM, detecting the inconsistencies between negative habits and values (e.g., health, family, faith, character) and concluding that these “disconnects” are unacceptable promotes the need for health behavior change. Participants were 164 full-time employees at a university in the southeastern U.S. The program included fitness coaching and a 90-minute orientation based on the DVM. Multivariate Mixed Model analyses indicated significantly improved scores from pre- to post-intervention on selected measures of physical fitness and mental well-being. The results suggest that the Disconnected Values Model provides an effective cognitive-behavioral approach to generating health behavior change in a 10-week workplace wellness program.

Sources and cognitive appraisals of acute stress as predictors of coping style among male and female Chinese athletes

Abstract The purposes of this study were to determine the extent to which sources of stressful events and cognitive appraisal of those events predict coping style and to determine differences in coping style between 138 (ns = 74 females and 64 males) Chinese college athletes at the elite level and 253 (ns = 60 females and 193 males) non‐elite athletes who had competed on their high school sports team, and currently engage in recreational (intramural) sports as college students. Two fivepoint Likert‐type inventories were developed for this study, the Sources of Acute Stress in Sport Inventory (SASSI) and the Coping Style in Sport Inventory (CSSI). The Stress Appraisal Measure (SAM; Peacock & Wong, 1990), a validated measure used extensively in the non‐sport literature, identified the athletes’ cognitive appraisals. Results of a discriminant analysis indicated that three stress sources, verbal‐abuse‐by‐others, coach‐dissatisfaction, and environmental‐sources, and two cognitive appraisals, control‐by‐self and control‐by‐others, were significant predictors for athletes’ coping styles. It was concluded that coping style is a function of the type of stressor and cognitive appraisal and that an athletes coping style differs as a function of skill level and gender

Effectiveness of Motivational Interviewing on Changes in Fitness, Blood Lipids, and Exercise Adherence of Police Officers: An Outcome-Based Action Study:

Motivational interviewing (MI) is a client-centered approach to behavior change. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of a 10-week intervention, using MI procedures, on selected measures of fitness, blood lipids (reflecting changes in exercise and dietary habits), and exercise adherence among 67 police officers—54 men and 13 women—in the southeastern United States. Multivariate analyses indicated significantly improved physical fitness and lipid profile scores between pre- and postintervention (p < .001). Adherence to the fitness regimen averaged 80% for cardiovascular activity and 75% for strength training. MI techniques appeared to markedly encourage selected changes in health behaviors (e.g., exercise, eating habits) among the police officers. The relatively few female officers in the study may limit the generalization of results to both genders.

Psychological Predictors of Coping Responses Among Greek Basketball Referees

Abstract The authors examined the effects of situational appraisals (perceived control and intensity), coping styles (monitoring and blunting), and personal dispositions (optimism and self-esteem) on the approach and avoidance coping responses of skilled Greek basketball referees (N = 162) and the consistency of their responses following 3 game-related stressful situations. In an effort to clarify the variables involved in coping and to consider the theoretical principles both within and beyond sports, the authors replicated an earlier study among Australian basketball referees (A. Kaissidis-Rodafinos, M. H. Anshel, & A. Porter, 1997). The results were equivocal: The Greek referees were not consistent in using avoidance and approach coping responses across situations. Approach coping was more predictable than avoidance coping in accounting for both situational and personal variables.

Psychological Predictors of Mental Toughness in Elite Tennis: An Exploratory Study in Learned Resourcefulness and Competitive Trait Anxiety:

The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which two constructs, learned resourcefulness and competitive trait anxiety, measured by the Self-Control Schedule and Sports Competition Anxiety Test, respectively, predicted mental toughness on the Sports Mental Toughness Questionnaire among male and female elite tennis players. The participants included two NCAA Division 1 (U.S.) intercollegiate tennis teams comprising eight male (M age = 19.4 yr., SD = 1.2) and eight female (M age = 20.9 yr., SD = 1.4) players and their respective head coaches (N = 2, M age = 28 yr., SD = 5.7). Results of regression analyses indicated that learned resourcefulness was the primary predictor of athlete self-rated mental toughness and that competitive trait anxiety was relatively unrelated to coach and athlete-rated mental toughness. The positive significant relationship between mental toughness and learned resourcefulness suggests that the latter may be an integral component of mental toughness, at least among elite tennis players. Further research is needed to examine related components of mental toughness, including learned resourcefulness, and to determine the effectiveness of interventions that increase mental toughness to optimal levels, particularly as a function of sport type.

The Disconnected Values (Intervention) Model for Promoting Healthy Habits in Religious Institutions

The purpose of this article is to provide an intervention model that can be used by religious leaders for changing health behavior among practicing members of religious communities. The intervention does not require extensive training or licensure in counseling psychology. At the heart of this model is the acknowledgement that a person’s negative habits (e.g., lack of exercise, poor nutrition) and his or her deepest values and beliefs (e.g., faith, health, family) are often misaligned, or disconnected. In addition, the unhealthy outcomes from these habits are contrary to the scriptural traditions of the world religions and thus are especially relevant to individuals who practice their religious beliefs. The Sacred Scriptures of Judaism and Christianity, for example, are replete with teachings that extol the virtues of practicing habits that promote good health and energy. In addition, evidence is mounting in the existing health intervention literature that adopting permanent and desirable changes in health behavior have not been successful, and that adherence to desirable habits such as exercise and proper nutrition is short-lived. The Disconnected Values Model (DVM) provides a novel approach for enhancing health behavior change within the context of the mission of most religious institutions. The model is compatible with skills presented by religious leaders, who possess more credibility and influence in changing the behavior of members and service attendees of their respective religious institutions. The religious leader’s role is to provide the client with faith-based incentives to initiate and maintain changes in their health behaviors, and perhaps to provide resources for the individual to pursue an action plan. A case study is described in which the DVM intervention was used successfully with an individual of strong faith.

The Role of Religious Leaders in Promoting Healthy Habits in Religious Institutions

The growing obesity epidemic in the West, in general, and the USA, in particular, is resulting in deteriorating health, premature and avoidable onset of disease, and excessive health care costs. The religious community is not immune to these societal conditions. Changing health behavior in the community requires both input from individuals who possess knowledge and credibility and a receptive audience. One group of individuals who may be uniquely positioned to promote community change but have been virtually ignored in the applied health and consulting psychology literature is religious leaders. These individuals possess extraordinary credibility and influence in promoting healthy behaviors by virtue of their association with time-honored religious traditions and the status which this affords them—as well as their communication skills, powers of persuasion, a weekly (captive) audience, mastery over religious texts that espouse the virtues of healthy living, and the ability to anchor health-related actions and rituals in a person’s values and spirituality. This article focuses on ways in which religious leaders might promote healthy habits among their congregants. By addressing matters of health, nutrition, and fitness from the pulpit and in congregational programs, as well as by visibly adopting the tenets of a healthier lifestyle, clergy can deliver an important message regarding the need for healthy living. Through such actions, religious leaders can be effective agents in promoting critical change in these areas.