How people typically respond to life's problems is of critical importance, particularly how they appraise their problem-solving skills and whether they generally approach or avoid the many problems of life. A critical strength or resource for coping with life's demands is a person's appraisal of his or her problem-solving skills and style. This chapter focuses on how problem-solving appraisal has been empirically demonstrated to be an important asset in living and an important component of positive psychology. Specifically, it begins with a brief history of applied problem-solving appraisal, followed by how it is measured. The Problem Solving Inventory (PSI) has been one of the most widely used self-report inventories in applied problem solving; the PSI has a strong empirical base, and it is strongly linked to a wide range of indices of psychological adjustment, physical health, a wide array of coping activities, and vocational adjustment. The chapter also provides a brief overview of problem-solving training interventions, and finally future research directions and conclusions. Because problem-solving appraisal is learned, this implies that it is amenable to change; this provides hope for millions of people to bring positive change to their lives through the integration of problem solving and positive psychology.
To test the Cultural and Contextual Model of Coping, 2 studies examined the psychometric properties of the Problem Solving Inventory (PSI; Heppner, 1988 ) among Chinese college students. Study 1 ( N = 736) examined the generalizability of the factor structure of the PSI through confirmatory and exploratory factor analyses, as well as its relationship with career decision-making difficulties. A revised 18-item Problem Solving Inventory-Chinese (PSI-CN) revealed similar but slightly different factors: Problem Solving Confidence, Reflective Thinking, and Emotional Control. Moreover, the PSI-CN was found to have good estimates of internal consistency, as well as found to be negatively associated with career decision-making difficulties. Study 2 ( N = 357) examined the stability of the 18-item PSI-CN, as well as a relationship with psychological distress. The confirmatory factor analysis again supported the 3-factor model of the PSI-CN. Additional analyses of psychological distress provided additional construct validity estimates for the PSI-CN; problem solving appraisal was negatively associated with psychological distress. Implications of the PSI-CN factor structure are discussed in a Chinese cultural context. Limitations of current study and future lines of research are also discussed.
The current study reports the development of a dispositional Chinese Proactive Coping (CPC) Inventory to assess proactive coping activities, which intend to interfere with or prepare for potential future stressors, among Chinese college students. The results of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses using two samples of Chinese college students ( N = 459) suggested the viability and stability of a four-factor model: Active Preparation for Potential Stressors, Utilizing Knowledge of Potential Stressors, Contextual Consideration of Proactive Actions, and Approaching Proactive Actions. The 17-item CPC provided strong evidences of psychometric properties, and the proactive coping strategies represented in the items were helpful in resolving life problems. In addition, concurrent, construct, and incremental validity estimates suggest the CPC (a) was conceptually not only quite different than the reactive coping inventories but also slightly positively related, (b) was associated with a range of indices of psychological adjustment, and (c) uniquely predicted additional variance in coping outcomes beyond social desirability. The results suggest the importance of broadening coping theories to include proactive coping reflecting the complex nature of human coping behaviors.
Perfectionism is a multidimensional personality construct salient for international students; they are known to be likely high achievers in their home country and face several acculturative challenges after crossing national borders. This study examined whether perfectionist types changed during cross-national transitions in a sample of 227 Chinese international students studying in the U.S. Individuals were classified into different types of perfectionists—adaptive, maladaptive, and non- perfectionists. Results indicated that 40% of the participants’ perfectionist types changed during their cross-national transition. After studying in the United States, more non-perfectionists became perfectionists than perfectionists that turned into non-perfectionist. Acculturative stress predicted the direction of shift; nonperfectionists who perceived higher levels of acculturative stress were more likely to change into maladaptive perfectionists than adaptive perfectionists.
There is a dearth of research examining psychosocial factors that contribute to Asian international students’ acculturative stress. This study examines: (a) whether ethnic identity associates with acculturative stress, (b) whether other-group orientation mediates the relation between ethnic identity and acculturative stress, and (c) whether self-compassion moderates the relation between ethnic identity and acculturative stress. Results indicated that a stronger ethnic identity was associated with heightened acculturative stress. Self-compassion was significantly negatively associated with acculturative stress. Asian international students who strongly affiliated with their own ethnic group reported an increased openness to other ethnic groups and, in turn, reported reduced acculturative stress. Additional studies should examine other mediators that may explain the positive correlation between ethnic identity and acculturative stress.
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