active coping
a stress-management strategy in which a person directly works to control a stressor through appropriately targeted behavior, embracing responsibility for resolving the situation using one’s available internal resources. This type of coping strategy may take various forms, such as changing established habits. Active coping generally is considered adaptive, having been associated with fewer mood disturbances, enhanced self-efficacy, and other favorable consequences. It is similar to the earlier conceptualization of problem-focused coping but distinguished by its focus upon one’s internal resources. Compare passive coping. [identified in 1987 by Gregory K. Brown and Perry M. Nicassio (1947– ), U.S. clinical psychologists]