Estilos de afrontamiento ante el estrés empleados por estudiantes de la Universidad para personas adultas mayores en Cuenca, periodo 2022 – 2023

Abstract

A coping style is a habitual pattern of behavior that people use to handle stressful or challenging situations. It is the way each individual faces the problems and difficulties of life. In late adulthood, physical, psychological, and social changes occur, which can generate stress. Therefore, to achieve adequate psychosocial adjustment, older adults adopt coping styles such as religion, problem-focused coping, avoidance, etc. This research aims to describe the stress coping styles used by students at the University for Older Adults in Cuenca (UPAM), determine the predominant coping strategies based on each style, and identify the styles used according to sociodemographic characteristics. The study has a quantitative approach, with a non-experimental cross-sectional design and a descriptive scope. Forty-four UPAM students aged between 65 and 79 years (X̅ = 69 years) participated in the study. The Stress Coping Questionnaire was administered. The results showed that the coping style used the most by the participants to deal with stress was problem-focused coping (M = 24.54), followed by religion (M = 23.04), and the least used was open emotional expression (M = 12.6). In conclusion, according to the objectives set out, UPAM students make greater use of problem-focused coping styles. To highlight that the use of appropriate coping strategies can have a significant impact on the mental and physical health of older adults.