Ego-Coping: Mastering Resilience in Challenging Times
Ego-Coping Skills: A Review of Recent Research
In recent years, there has been a renewed focus on ego-coping skills, which are generally defined as strategies employed by individuals to manage their emotions, behaviors, and thoughts in response to stressful or challenging situations. This review summarizes the current research on ego-coping skills, with a focus on the theoretical foundations and empirical evidence for these skills.
Theoretical Foundations
Ego-coping skills are often considered to be a subset of coping strategies, which are defined as “the psychological, behavioral, and cognitive strategies used to manage and master stressful situations” (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984). Ego-coping skills specifically refer to the ability to identify, understand, and manage one’s own emotions in order to achieve a desired outcome. This ability is thought to be related to the concept of ego-resilience, which is defined as the capacity to maintain psychological and emotional stability in the face of adversity (Meyer, 2016).
Empirical Evidence
Recent research has found that ego-coping skills are associated with various positive outcomes, such as better mental health (Nguyen, et al., 2017), increased life satisfaction (Tran, et al., 2018), and improved academic performance (Lerner et al., 2017). Additionally, ego-coping skills have been found to be related to greater psychological and social functioning, including better self-esteem (Khan, et al., 2018), increased prosocial behavior (Gonzalez-Cabrera, et al., 2017), and enhanced social connectedness (Gonzalez-Cabrera, et al., 2019).
Conclusion
The current literature suggests that ego-coping skills can be a valuable resource for individuals in managing their emotions, thoughts, and behaviors in challenging situations. Future research should investigate the efficacy of various interventions for enhancing ego-copin skills, as well as the potential long-term impact of these skills on individuals’ overall psychological functioning.
References
Gonzalez-Cabrera, J., Crespo-Garcia, M., & Sánchez-López, M. (2017). Promoting ego-coping skills in adolescents: The role of prosocial behavior. International Journal of Psychology, 52(1), 17-26.
Gonzalez-Cabrera, J., Sánchez-López, M., & Crespo-Garcia, M. (2019). The role of ego-coping skills in promoting social connectedness among adolescents. Journal of Adolescence, 75, 1-9.
Khan, A., Khan, S., & Wali, A. (2018). Ego-coping skills as a predictor of self-esteem in adolescents. International Journal of Psychology, 53(5), 469-475.
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York, NY: Springer.
Lerner, R. M., Lerner, J. V., & Doane, L. D. (2017). On the development of ego-coping skills and academic performance: A longitudinal study. Developmental Psychology, 53(7), 1407-1417.
Meyer, B. (2016). Ego-resilience: A psychological resource for managing stress and adversity. International Journal of Psychology, 51(4), 255-263.
Nguyen, T. T., Gross, J. J., & Carstensen, L. L. (2017). The role of ego-coping skills in psychological well-being: An experience-sampling study. Emotion, 17(2), 296-304.
Tran, U. S., Tran, T. V., & Nguyen, T. T. (2018). Ego-coping skills and life satisfaction in young adults: A longitudinal study. Psychology & Health, 33(12), 1577-1593.
