Coping is a necessary process which enables people to adapts to various changes, such as aging, in their life. People need to make adjustments with increasing changes in their ages as their mental and physical abilities change. Some coping strategies are adaptive, while others are maladaptive. I believe some of the theories and models that can help one cope with stressors are developmental and non-developmental models. The non-developmental model contains emotionally focused strategies that enable individuals to cope with increasing stress. Emotional strategies are essential as they help people relieve emotions, manage hostile feelings, and engage in mindful practices. For example, an individual can engage in relaxation training by mediation, music, yoga, or practicing art therapy. The developmental regulation can also help individuals to control over the losses and gains. The lifespan theory helps an individual to take control of their environment. The approach involves the primary and secondary regulations on one’s environment (Heckhausen, 2006) . The primary controls help an individual regulate the immediate surroundings while the secondary control affects the inner world to optimize primary control's motivational resources.
On the other hand, I believe some theories and models are less effective in helping individuals cope with stress. Specifically, the problem-focused strategy may be ineffective in handling some problems. The technique involves informational seeking and taking control of oneself. The strategy is maladaptive as sometimes people cannot manage to make the uncontrollable problems go away. For example, people can choose to take alcohol and making impulsive decisions as a way to relieve their stress. Individuals develop temporary solutions in which the problem persists. Also, the detrimental theories can be ineffective. They make individuals just focus on the losses of relatives and friends (Mason, 2011) , which might make people affected by traumatic stress due to deep thoughts and loneliness.
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References
Heckhausen, J. (2006). Developmental Regulation in Adulthood; Age-Normative and Sociostructural Constraints as Adaptive Challenges. Cambridge University Press.
Mason, M. G. (2011). Coping and Support in Late Adulthood. In Adulthood & Aging. Pearson Education Inc.