Understanding the Gap Between Stress and Coping in the Teaching and Social Work Professions

• In Event: 31.083 - International Perspectives on Occupational Stress, Coping, and Resilience in the Helping Professions

Abstract

The acute experience of traumatic stress is associated with an event that is experienced as stressful by nearly anyone, and that may result in posttraumatic stress disorder for some. On the other hand, the experience of sustained exposure to daily hassles over a long period of time can result in the appraisal of demands outweighing resources followed by increased risk for the stress response, and eventually burnout. These are distinct processes. The first can be experienced by anyone in society, and can bring them in contact with helping professionals. The second is common among those working within the human service professions. This study focuses on the second process, though it is impacted by the first.
The purpose of this study was to explore why the activation of coping resources occurs more effectively for some than for others working in the human service profession. Qualitative interviews using a modified repertory grid technique (Kelly, 1955) were conducted. This technique is suitable to identify ways in which individuals give meaning to their experiences (Shaw, 1980). It solicits information from which conclusions can be drawn with respect to personality without being a conventional personality test. The repertory grid in this study consisted of several parts: (1) the quality of activated resources, (2) examples of coping well or poorly with stress, and (3) the basic terms used to make sense of the experience.
An interview protocol was constructed according to the repertory grid technique and used within interviews with a sample of 20 social workers and teachers in the United States and Germany. The findings led to the identification of a theoretical gap between the stress response and coping. It was found that the quality which separates those who can cope successfully from others consists in the capacity for resource activation. For example, some helping professionals are able to rise up above daily hassles, to pass over them, and to move forward.
In order to better understand this gap between the stress response and coping, all interviews were transcribed and analyzed in-depth following the procedures of Grounded Theory as developed by Glaser and Strauss (1967). Collapsing individual codes into themes eventually generated the new theory of Transcendent Resource Activation (TRA). The following three themes emerged: (1) transcending one’s internal life, (2) ability to transcend circumstances, and (3) focusing on one’s calling, meaning, and purpose.
While the first theme includes components of mindfulness, the second one is similar to components of maintaining perspective, and the third one is related to self-acceptance. Implications for future research include the development of an instrument to explore whether coping can become more effective in individuals with Transcendent Resource Activation (TRA) capacities or if it is a direct antecedent to effective coping. If it is a moderating process, where coping enters into the process following the acute or sustained trauma or stressors, those who possess more of the TRA capacities can derive more benefit from coping strategies.

Authors

• Annette Ullrich, Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg Stuttgart

• Richard G. Lambert, University of North Carolina - Charlotte