The DOI matches its Crossref record; 131 of the 135 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Stress, Coping, and Social Support Processes: Where Are We? What Next?
Abstract
I review existing knowledge, unanswered questions, and new directions in research on stress, coping resource, coping strategies, and social support processes. New directions in research on stressors include examining the differing impacts of stress across a range of physical and mental health outcomes, the "carry-overs" of stress from one role domain or stage of life into another, the benefits derived from negative experiences, and the determinants of the meaning of stressors. Although a sense of personal control and perceived social support influence health and mental health both directly and as stress buffers, the theoretical mechanisms through which they do so still require elaboration and testing. New work suggests that coping flexibility and structural constraints on individuals' coping efforts may be important to pursue. Promising new directions in social support research include studies of the negative effects of social relationships and of support giving, mutual coping and support-giving dynamics, optimal "matches" between individuals' needs and support received, and properties of groups which can provide a sense of social support. Qualitative comparative analysis, optimal matching analysis, and event-structure analysis are new techniques which may help advance research in these broad topic areas. To enhance the effectiveness of coping and social support interventions, intervening mechanisms need to be better understood. Nevertheless, the policy implications of stress research are clear and are important given current interest in health care reform in the United States.
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In the citing paper
“The stress-coping theory posits that the availability of coping resources would facilitate the use of adaptive coping strategies to deal with stressors and increase the efficacy of coping strategies [21,22].”
From Associations between COVID-19 Work-Related Stressors and Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms among Chinese Doctors and Nurses: Application of Stress-Coping Theory (2022) · cites this paper as [22]
In the citing paper
“Therefore, the results generally support the stress-coping theory that coping resources would facilitate effective coping and moderate the relationship of stressors, coping, and health outcomes [21,22].”
From Associations between COVID-19 Work-Related Stressors and Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms among Chinese Doctors and Nurses: Application of Stress-Coping Theory (2022) · cites this paper as [22]
In the citing paper
“From a theoretical standpoint, our findings align with social support theory. That is, interactions with therapy dogs and handlers may serve as a source of social support, resulting in reduced students’ anxiety and stress levels [22].”
From Canine-assisted therapy in reducing stress and anxiety levels of university students: systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (2025) · cites this paper as [22]
In the citing paper
“This could improve social interactions as quality social relationships are an important protective factor against mental disorders (76).”
From Behavioral Intervention Technologies: Evidence review and recommendations for future research in mental health (2013) · cites this paper as [76]
Citations
Cites
“Stress: appraisal and coping,”
Folkman, S. (2013) · Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1007/978-1-4419-1005-9_215 · Cited by 27,833
Stress, social support, and the buffering hypothesis
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The social readjustment rating scale
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“…of new methods of measuring stress have been developed and refined (e.g., Bolger et al. 1989a; Brown and Harris 1978, 1989; Dohrenwend et al. 1993; Pearlin and Schooler 1978; Wheaton 1991; Zautra, Guarnaccia, and Dohrenwend 1986), and stress theory has been elaborated to incorporate factors which…”
BackgroundMethodInfluentialAn Analysis of Coping in a Middle-Aged Community Sample
Folkman, S., & Lazarus, R. S. (1980) · Journal of Health and Social Behavior · doi:10.2307/2136617 · Cited by 6,361
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“…use problem-focused coping strategies or to have an active coping style (Menaghan 1982, 1983; Menaghan and Merves 1984; Pearlin and Schooler 1978; Pearlin et al. 1981; Ross and Mirowsky 1989), most of these studies also show that problem-focused coping either has no effects on or in some cases…”
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Dynamics of a stressful encounter: Cognitive appraisal, coping, and encounter outcomes.
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Deutsch, S. E., & House, J. S. (1983) · Contemporary Sociology A Journal of Reviews · doi:10.2307/2069001 · Cited by 4,768
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4 of the 135 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
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Items 1,001–1,018 of 1,018
Pinks, D., Warren-James, M., & Katsikitis, M. (2021) · Australasian Emergency Care · doi:10.1016/j.auec.2021.03.005 · Cited by 22
Beigi, M., Nayyeri, S., & Shirmohammadi, M. (2022) · Journal of Vocational Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2022.103782 · Cited by 22
Donato, K. M., León-Pérez, G., Wallston, K. A., & Kripalani, S. (2018) · Journal of Health and Social Behavior · doi:10.1177/0022146518789362 · Cited by 22
“It is instrumental (e.g., tangible and/or financial assistance; House 1981), emotional (e.g., involving love, sympathy, and/or understanding from others; Thoits 1995), or informational (e.g., assistance in making decisions and giving feedback; Cohen and Wills 1985).”
BackgroundA qualitative study of women’s network social support and facility delivery in rural Ghana
Cofie, L. E., Barrington, C., Sodzi-Tettey, S., Ennett, S., Maman, S., & Singh, K. (2018) · PLOS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0206429 · Cited by 21
Media marathoning through health struggles: filling a social reservoir.
Perks, L. G. (2019) · Journal of Communication Inquiry · doi:10.1177/0196859918814826 · Cited by 20
“…which refers to functional, informational, or emotional assistance provided by friends, family members, coworkers, and other significant people in one’s life, can be considered “a coping resource—in this case a social ‘fund’ from which people may draw when handling stressors” (Thoits, 1995, p. 64).”
BackgroundEitle, T. M., & Eitle, D. (2014) · Substance Use & Misuse · doi:10.3109/10826084.2013.832329 · Cited by 20
“Extant research supports the notion that exposure to stressors and access to resources to manage stress exposure is stratified by one’s structural position in American society, including race (Link & Phelan, 1995; Thoits, 1995; Turner & Lloyd, 2004; Turner, Wheaton, & Lloyd, 1995) and that such differences in social p…”
BackgroundGrey, I. K., Berzenski, S. R., & Yates, T. M. (2015) · Emerging Adulthood · doi:10.1177/2167696815576457 · Cited by 19
“Past work has demonstrated that the use of effective coping strategies reduces the emotional distress precipitated by stress (Thoits, 1995).”
Impacts of a Support Intervention for Zimbabwean and Sudanese Refugee Parents: “I Am Not Alone”
Stewart, M., Makwarimba, E., Letourneau, N. L., Kushner, K. E., Spitzer, D. L., Dennis, C.-L., & Shizha, E. (2015) · Canadian Journal of Nursing Research · doi:10.1177/084456211504700409 · Cited by 18
Patterns of coping among family caregivers of frail older adults
Lin, I.-F., & Wu, H.-S. (2014) · Research on Aging · doi:10.1177/0164027513513271 · Cited by 18
“Many researchers have documented how social resources can help people cope with stress and increase their wellbeing (Thoits, 1995).”
Haslam, A., Love, C., Taniguchi, T., Williams, M. B., Wetherill, M. S., Sisson, S., Weedn, A. E., Jacob, T., & Blue Bird Jernigan, V. (2023) · Health Education & Behavior · doi:10.1177/10901981211067168 · Cited by 14
“Married people report higher social support than non-married people (Soulsby & Bennett, 2015; Thoits, 1995), but studies on cardiovascular lifestyle interventions have shown differing health effects between being married and measurements of social support (Aggarwal et al.”
BackgroundSim, S. Q., Liu, Z., Wu, Z., Wang, S., & Nisa, C. (2025) · BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies · doi:10.1186/s12906-025-04955-2 · Cited by 14
Parental support and juvenile delinquency
Wright, J. P., Cullen, F. T., & Wooldredge, J. D. (2000) · Contemporary Perspectives in Family Research · doi:10.1016/s1530-3535(00)80010-2 · Cited by 10
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She, R., Li, L., Yang, Q., Lin, J., Ye, X., Wu, S., Yang, Z., Guan, S., Zhang, J., Ling, R. H. Y., et al. (2022) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph19106201 · Cited by 8
“The stress-coping theory posits that the availability of coping resources would facilitate the use of adaptive coping strategies to deal with stressors and increase the efficacy of coping strategies [21,22].”
BackgroundResultBovier, P. A., Chamot, E., & Perneger, T. V. (2002) · Sozial- und Präventivmedizin¶Social and Preventive Medicine¶Médecine social et préventive · doi:10.1007/pl00012640 · Cited by 7
(2012) · doi:10.4324/9780203813195-17 · Cited by 157
Southam-Gerow, M. A., & Kendall, P. C. (2000) · Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy · doi:10.1002/1099-0879(200011)7:5
Metadata
- Authors
- Thoits, P. A.
- Affiliations
- Vanderbilt University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Thoits, Peggy A.
- ORCID
- Thoits, Peggy A.
- Venue
- Journal of Health and Social Behavior
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 1995
- Volume
- 35
- Pages
- 53
- ISSN
- 0022-1465 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2081745157
- Cited by
- 3,496
- References
- 135
- Citations by year
- 2026: 70 · 2025: 108 · 2024: 107 · 2023: 94 · 2022: 145 · 2021: 139 · 2020: 144 · 2019: 139 · 2018: 141 · 2017: 178 · 2016: 160 · 2015: 162 · 2014: 159 · 2013: 164 · 2012: 156
- FWCI
- 34.48
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of Health and Social Behavior (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Resilience and Mental Health
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Attachment and Relationship Dynamics
- Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
- Keywords
- stress, coping strategies, social support, stressors, coping flexibility, personal control, perceived social support, stress buffering, negative experiences, interpersonal relationships, group support, coping interventions, health care reform
- MeSH terms
- Adaptation, Psychological, Health Status, Humans, Public Policy, Social Support, Socioeconomic Factors, Sociology, Medical, Stress, Psychological
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