Stressor Appraisals, Coping, and Post-Event Outcomes: The Dimensionality and Antecedents of Stress-Related Growth

This study evaluated the dimensionality and the appraisal and coping antecedents of stress-related growth. We surveyed university alumni (N = 447) and college students (N = 472) about their most stressful event in the past two years. Participants reported appraisals of this event and their use of specific coping strategies. To assess growth from this event, we used a revised version of Park, Cohen, and Murch's (1996) Stress-Related Growth Scale (SRGS). Results from confirmatory factor analyses in both samples indicated that the revised SRGS should be regarded as a multidimensional instrument. Next, we used cluster analysis to identify event profiles based on appraisal and coping reports, and then compared these profiles on reports of growth. In both samples, stress-related growth was highest for individuals who reported highly stressful events, for which they had adequate coping and support resources and for which they used adaptive coping strategies.