The role of threat appraisal and coping style in psychological response to the COVID-19 pandemic among university students

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has led to psychological distress among community samples and university students. Some coping behaviors and cognitive appraisals allow individuals to experience positive psychological growth amid such a crisis (Folkman et al. 1986). In the event of continuing waves of COVID-19 infection and future viral outbreaks, understanding the relationships between coping behaviors, stress appraisals, and COVID-related distress and growth can empower public health officials and university leadership to mitigate negative consequences and encourage growth. Methods: 774 undergraduate students completed online self-report measures of coping (Brief COPE; emotion, problem, avoidant), stress appraisal (SAM; threat/centrality, challenge/self-efficacy, uncontrol, other-control), neuroticism (NEON), health anxiety (SHAI), and COVID-19 exposure/impact (C-PIQ; distress and growth). Hypotheses were examined via simple regressions and interactions. Results: Increased utilization of avoidant coping was associated with high levels of distress regardless of whether it was perceived as threatening or not. Emotion-focused and problem-focused coping strategies were associated with more growth, whereas avoidant coping was associated with less growth. Higher emotion-focused coping and challenge appraisal together predicted the most growth. Limitations: Cross-sectional design precludes the tracking of distress and growth over time; this study relied on self-report data. Conclusions: These results underscore the impact of stress appraisals on the mental health of students navigating the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings may inform public health messaging–or have clinical implications, as successful interventions exist for improving coping strategies and stress appraisals.