Relationships between coping style and PAI profiles in a community sample

Abstract

Relationships between coping style and psychological functioning were examined in a heterogeneous community sample (N = 168). Psychological functioning was categorized with the Personality Assessment Inventory (PAI; Morey, 1991). Subjects were assigned to PAI configural profile clusters, using T-scores from PAI clinical scales. Three PAI clusters were prominent in this sample: normal, anxious, and eccentric. Multivariate analysis of covariance revealed that these clusters differed significantly in coping style, as measured by the dispositional format of the COPE Inventory (Carver, Scheier, & Weintraub, 1989). Normals coped through avoidance significantly less than anxious or eccentric subjects. Also, normals engaged in seeking social support and venting more than eccentric but less than anxious subjects. Gender differences also were noted, with women more likely to cope by seeking social support and men more likely to cope through hedonistic escapism.