Coping styles as predictors of college adjustment among freshmen

Abstract

Based on Tyler's model of psychosocial competence, the present study tested the hypothesis that students' differential coping styles could impact their adjustment to college. A college adjustment measure and a coping styles instrument were administered to 161 freshmen at a small eastern college. First-year students were chosen because college adjustment is particularly salient in the freshmen year. The results indicated that academic adjustment and personal/emotional adjustment were related to the coping strategies, while social adjustment and attachment/goal commitment were not related to coping strategies. Active coping, which focuses on doing something positive to solve the problem, was predictive of academic adjustment. Academic adjustment was negatively predicted by suppression of competing activities which consists of attending to one problem at a time to the exclusion of other things. Personal/emotional adjustment was negatively related to the focus on emotion/venting of emotions dimension which is coping by emotional catharsis. Personal/emotional adjustment was also positively predicted by active-coping. Gender differences were also examined and discussed. These findings were interpreted as supportive of Tyler's model and their counselling implications were discussed.