Coping strategies, stressful life events, problem behaviors, and depressed affect

This study investigated the relationships of coping strategies, drinking motives, and stressful life events (major, daily positive, and daily negative) on emotional and behavioral problems, and academic functioning among a sample of 1251 Icelandic youth (mean age 18.9 years). Major stressful life events and negative daily events were associated with youth maladjustment across multiple domains of functioning. Coping motives for drinking predicted both alcohol use and alcohol problems. Emotion-focused coping was a strong predictor of depressed affect, and task-oriented coping was related inversely to emotional and behavioral problems. The findings with this sample of Icelandic youth were highly similar with previous findings with an American sample by Windle and Windle (1996), and suggest the need for more focused interventions on coping strategies and maladjustment among youth.