Debates on Stress Coping
Generally, coping style can be defined as mechanisms applied by an individual when under stress. According to Hatunoglu (2020), coping styles vary from one person to another. The three types of coping styles include avoidance, emotion-based, and problem-based. There are several factors affecting stress coping, including gender. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the differences between the coping styles of men and women. Additionally, the paper will also include a discussion on how gender orientation affects stress coping.
Coping Styles for Stress between Women and Men
Men and Women tend to react differently in stressful circumstances. To begin with, women tend to be emotional due to the female hormones and, therefore, are more inclined to seek emotional support as a way of coping with stress. For this reason, the women will engage in activities for relaxation, such as yoga or meditation. Furthermore, women will also seek social support from friends, spouses, or friends. According to Aljuhnie et al. (2024), it has been observed that women willingly seek professional psychological services when stressed more than men. The women, therefore, are likely to overcome stress faster.
On the other hand, men prefer to apply the problem-focused technique and, therefore, are focused on taking action to solve the problem directly. Unlike women who seek emotional support from other people or activities, men tend to suppress their emotions by engaging in activities that distract them, such as exercise, going to work, or drinking with friends (Havlovic & Keenan, 2020). Men find it difficult to discuss their problems due to societal expectations. Society expects men to be self-reliant, and therefore, men seeking emotional support may be viewed as weak. Therefore, very few men seek professional help in stressful situations. This explains why men eventually suffer from stressful events.
Coping Styles among the Sexual Minority
Consequently, homosexuals also cope differently with stress. Compared to heterosexuals, homosexuals generally have challenges coping with stress due to stigmatization from the public. Lesbian/bisexual women do experience internalized stigmatization and, therefore, have low self-esteem, which affects their coping mechanisms. On the other hand, gay/bisexual men experience internalized homophobia in addition to the societal views on masculinity, which despises homosexuality or bisexuality (Song et al., 2020). This makes them feel ashamed and inadequate, and therefore, they find it difficult to have supportive social networks.
Consistently, bisexual or lesbian women are likely to seek emotional support from close friends, family, or even professional therapists. Furthermore, they have a social support network readily available to validate their experiences. On the other hand, bisexual/gay men have challenges seeking support even from friends due to societal stigmatization (Chatmon, 2020). For this reason, bisexual/gay men are likely to be depressed as they tend to be lonely and avoid seeking help. As a result, homosexual/bisexual men are likely to succumb to stressful situations.
Conclusion
In summary, how people deal with stress can be different between men and women. Women often talk about their feelings and do relaxing things like yoga, while men usually try to solve problems or do things to distract themselves. Men sometimes find it hard to express their emotions or ask for help because society expects them to be tough. For people who are gay or bisexual, women might find it easier to get support from friends or family, but men might feel lonely because of how society sees them. It’s important to understand these differences and make sure everyone gets the help they need.
References
Aljuhnie, M. A., Alharbi, A. S., Alharbi, O. F., Saati, A. A., Alshumrani, F. A., Alharbi, A. E., … & Shatla Sr, M. (2024). Attitudes and Stigma Toward Seeking Psychological Help Among the General Population of Makkah, Saudi Arabia. Cureus, 16(3). https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.55492
Chatmon, B. N. (2020). Males and mental health stigma. American journal of men’s health, 14(4), 1557988320949322. https://doi.org/10.1177/1557988320949322
Hatunoglu, B. Y. (2020). Stress coping strategies of university students. Kıbrıslı Eğitim Bilimleri Dergisi, 15(5), 1320-1336. https://www.ceeol.com/search/article-detail?id=967394
Havlovic, S. J., & Keenan, J. P. (2020). Coping with work stress: The influence of individual differences. In Occupational Stress (pp. 179-192). CRC Press. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003072430-16
Song, C., Buysse, A., Zhang, W., Lu, C., Zhao, M., & Dewaele, A. (2020). Coping with minority stress in romantic relationships among lesbian, gay, and bisexual people. Current Psychology, 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-020-01188-z
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Debates on Stress Coping
Lazarus’s cognitive approach suggests that the way you cope with stress is based on your mental process of how you interpret and appraise a stressful situation in which the level of appraisal determines the level of stress and the unique coping strategies used (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). According to Lazarus, some specific events or stressors influence an individual’s cognitions of an event, known as appraisals, and your coping strategies refer to your cognitive and behavioral efforts to master the stressful event (Franken, 2007). The primary appraisal assesses whether the situation is threatening, and the secondary appraisal assesses how we should cope with the stress (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984).
Exploring Coping Strategies for Stress- A Personal and Family Approach
Another most debated gender stress–coping study has been the topic of orientation regarding gender and stress. Stress theory is often used to explain the relationship between social disadvantage and health (Scheid & Horwitz, 1999). Stress theory provides a useful approach to understanding the relationship between pervasive prejudice and discrimination and health outcomes, but the predictions based on the theory need to be carefully investigated (Aneshensel & Pearlin, 1987).
Another debate on stress coping focuses on role overload. Balancing both work and family often causes a role overload (Barnette & Gareis, 2008). Others see role stress as significant because it explains why women experience more stressful events and strain than men. Poverty also presents a risk for mental disorders for women; statistics show that those who live in poverty are at least two and a half times more likely to receive a mental health diagnosis than those who are not poor (Mossakowski, 2008).
Even if women as a group are not exposed to more stress than men, it is plausible that some subgroups of women—poor women, black women, and single mothers—are disadvantaged in significant ways (Acker, 2000).
In a 2- to 3-page analysis paper in a Microsoft Word document, address the following:
Do women and men have different coping styles for stress? Evidence about stress and gender has been mixed for decades. Compare the coping styles for stress of both men and women. Support your reasoning with research.
Some argue that female gender groups are more stressed than lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) persons as a group. Some are of the opinion that lesbian and bisexual women are exposed to greater stress than heterosexual women because of added disadvantaged sexual minority status and that lesbian and bisexual women are exposed to greater stress than gay and bisexual men because of their added disadvantaged gender status. On the basis of your readings, experiences, and research, what are your findings?