Meaning in stressful experiences and coping across cultures

We report three studies to examine how culture may influence people's tendency to see meaning in stressful experiences (MISE), as well as their coping responses. Using a newly developed MISE scale with established measurement invariance across both cultures, we found that Chinese participants were more likely than Euro-Canadians to see meaning in stressful experiences (Studies 1 and 2), to adopt acceptance and positive reframing coping styles (Study 1), and to respond more positively to the COVID-19 pandemic (Study 2). To establish a causal link between MISE and coping, we primed MISE in Study 3 with Chinese participants and found an increase in resilient coping. The research highlights the important roles of culture and meaning making in coping. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Meaning in Stressful Experiences and Coping Across Cultures

We report three studies to examine how culture may influence people?s tendency to see meaning in stressful experiences (MISE), as well as their coping responses. Using a newly developed MISE scale with established measurement invariance across both cultures, we found that Chinese participants were more likely than Euro-Canadians to see meaning in stressful experiences (Studies 1 and 2), to adopt acceptance and positive reframing coping styles (Study 1), and to respond more positively to the COVID-19 pandemic (Study 2). To establish a causal link between MISE and coping, we primed MISE in Study 3 with Chinese participants and found an increase in resilient coping. The research highlights the important roles of culture and meaning making in coping.

Meaning making helps cope with COVID-19: A longitudinal study.

Meaning making is a useful coping strategy in negative situations. We investigated whether making meaning in negative experiences (MINE) would help people cope with COVID-19. We conducted a three-wave longitudinal study (N = 2364) three months before, during, and after the COVID-19 outbreak in China. Results showed that participants reported increased tendency of MINE during the COVID-19 outbreak than three months before the outbreak. Moreover, both initial MINE and the increased MINE predicted less psychological distress including depression, anxiety and stress, during and three months after the outbreak. Perceived benefits and costs of the COVID-19 mediated the long-term effect of MINE. These findings not only provide novel evidence for meaning making model but also shed light on the underlying mechanism, suggesting an effective strategy to cope with stressful events such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.