Coping behaviors in recreational settings: Substitution, displacement, and cognitive adjustments as a response to stress

Miller, Theron

This study employs a transactional model of stress and coping as a means of understanding the behaviors employed by recreationists who encountered negative experience elements at Glacier National Park. Within this model, coping behaviors can be viewed as the result of ongoing transactions between personal and environmental factors, perceptions of threat or stress, and the effectiveness of coping strategies. This research examines the personal and situational influences on primary stress appraisals (level of stress) and identifies outcomes of secondary appraisals (coping responses). A model of stress appraisal and coping that included both cognitive and behavioral adjustments was developed and tested. A particular focus of study was on testing the relationships between primary and secondary appraisals of stress. One result of this analysis was the identification of several types of coping response. The responses included: direct action to change environmental conditions, absolute displacement, temporal substitution, resource substitution, and cognitive adjustments. Further results of hypothesis testing revealed that several personal and situational factors do indeed influence the perception of stress. Also, the use of self-reported negative affective response, combined with measures of general concern and perceived stress, provided a promising indicator of stress. Levels of stress derived from these measures were found to influence the types of coping behaviors chosen. Specifically, respondents with lower levels of stress were more likely to engage in certain cognitive adjustments to maintain satisfaction. Moderate levels of stress were associated with behavioral changes characterized as temporal or resource substitution. Respondents reporting the highest levels of stress were more likely to engage in either direct action to change the environmental conditions, or to be displaced from the recreational setting entirely. Overall, this study demonstrates the usefulness of examining coping behaviors within a transactional framework. The combination of personal, environmental, and coping responses provides a means of conceptualizing many different strains of recreational choices, perceptions, and responses. Possibilities for future research include refinement of stress and coping measures, operationalization of personal and situational influencing factors, and applications of this methodology to a variety of recreational settings.