Developmental and situational differences in coping among children and adolescents with diabetes

Children and adolescents with diabetes indicated how they coped with three diabetes-related situations (diabetes-related social, diet, fingerprick) and a general peer-argument situation. Children utilized approach-coping strategies (i.e., problem solving, seeking social support) more frequently than adolescents. Both the approach- and avoidance-coping strategies (i.e., internalizing, externalizing, distancing) were highly and positively correlated across situations. Across all four situations, approach-coping strategies were used more frequently than avoidance-coping strategies. Approach-coping strategies were used less frequently for dealing with fingerpricks than the other situations. Avoidance-coping strategies were used more frequently for a general peer argument than the diabetes-related situations. In hierarchical regressions, after controlling for age, coping strategies accounted for a significant portion of the variance in predicting some global adjustment indices (grade point average, depression) and situation-specific, self-rated coping effectiveness. Higher levels of approach coping and lower levels of avoidance coping were generally related to more positive outcomes.