Numerous studies have accumulated findings indicating that the way of coping is a critical mediator in the relation between these traumatic events and psychological outcomes. This study investigates the associations between coping strategies and post-traumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in Korean adults.

Through an online survey, 554 non-clinical adult respondents were recruited. We assessed PTSS using the Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R) scale and measured individual coping strategies using the Ways of Coping Checklist (WCCL). Based on the IES-R standard cut-off score, we categorized the respondents into 3 groups: normal (n=255), non-PTSS (n=185) and PTSS (n=144) after exposure to traumatic events.

The scores of each coping strategy in a PTSS group were generally higher than in either the normal or non-PTSS group. In the logistic regression analysis, PTSS group was 2.77 more likely to use Tension-reduction coping compared to the other two samples.

Our findings suggest that PTSS is associated with high inclination to apply emotion-focused coping such as tension-reduction contributing to psychological distress. These results point to the potential value of coping strategies in prevention of and therapeutic approach to PTSS for non-clinical adults.