Changing and coping, and the stimulus to change from an adolescent perspective: A replication of adult research

The aims of this research is to replicate an adult study, investigate adolescents perceptions of changing and coping, and compare the stimuli to cope with the stimuli to change. Previous findings from the adult research showed that changing and coping were considered conceptually similar. By contrast, the stimuli that prompt change were not associated with the stimuli that prompted coping. In this research structured interviews with 29 female and 32 male adolescents were analysed to investigate perceptions of coping and change. The results show that for the adolescents change was positive. Coping was considered more passive than was the experience of changing. In comparison with adults the adolescents considered change and coping to be less positive and less activity related. Adolescents made more references to developmental causes of change while adults referred more to self-motivated change. There was no association between what the adolescents reported as stimuli to change and the stimuli to cope.