avoidance coping
any strategy for managing a stressful situation in which a person does not address the problem directly but instead disengages from the situation and averts attention from it. In other words, the individual turns away from the processing of threatening information. Examples of avoidance coping include escapism, wishful thinking, self-isolation, undue emotional restraint, and using drugs or alcohol. While generally viewed more unfavorably than the converse approach coping, avoidant strategies may provide some benefit by reducing stress and preventing anxiety from becoming overwhelming. [identified in 1986 by Susan H. Roth (1948– ), U.S. personality psychologist, and Lawrence J. Cohen (1958– ), U.S. clinical psychologist]