Coping with difficulties as a problem in social psychology

Background. The interdisciplinary nature of the problem of coping with difficulties, which has already become a tradition, is based on both the phenomenological diversity of coping itself and the fact that the study of the patterns of psychological adaptation/maladaptation of individuals to their environment is a central topic in psychology. Today, this issue is accompanied by an expansion of research and, consequently, difficulties in conceptualization. The accumulation of extensive and contradictory empirical data leads to multiple content-related overlaps, necessitating new theoretical and methodological approaches to understanding them. Therefore, it is relevant to solve at least two problems: first, to identify the conceptual constants in this area, and second, to interpret them at a different level: through the correspondence of these research constants to the principles of situationalism, which are asserted by modern social psychology in the development of social cognition problems. Such an approach allows us to consider the process of individual coping with difficulties as unfolding in a specific social context, and the phenomenology of coping itself as being included in the process of constructing an image of a changing social world, which determines the socio-psychological perspective as the leading one in the prospective development of this problem. Objective. To determine the specifics of the socio-psychological perspective in the interdisciplinary space of the problem of human coping with difficult life situations. Methodology. Theoretical analysis of the problem of coping with difficult life situations. Methodological principles of situationalism in social psychology. Conclusions. Based on the analysis, three socio-psychological "points of development" of the problem of coping are identified: the inclusion of group subjects in the study of the coping process; the emphasis on the temporal aspects of coping (proactive coping); and the understanding of coping resources through fundamental personal parameters (identity, integrity, and the system of personal meanings). It is concluded that coping research is currently united by a common substantive intention: a pronounced transition to a holistic view of the process of human interaction with a difficult situation

Cognition · Coping behavior · Empirical research · Psychological research · Social change · Psycholinguistics and Behavioral Studies · Psychology of Development and Education · Technology and Human Factors in Education and Health

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