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Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, Vol. 28, No. 7, 974-985 (2002)

Relationship of War-Zone Coping Strategies to Long-Term General Life Adjustment Among Vietnam Veterans: Combat Exposure as a Moderator Variable

Michael K. Suvak

VA Boston Healthcare System

Dawne S. Vogt

VA Boston Healthcare System and Boston University School of Medicine

Vincent W. Savarese

Thomas Jefferson University

Lynda A. King

Thomas Jefferson University

Daniel W. King

VA Boston Healthcare System and Boston University School of Medicine

In this study, we examined long-term general life adjustmentamong members of one trauma-exposed population, Vietnamveterans, using data from a nationally representative sample.Our particular concern was the relationship between copingstrategies used in the war zone and the outcomes of achievement,life satisfaction, and lifetime adaptation (the latter defined interms of the absence of psychosocial problems in core lifedomains) as a function of level of combat exposure. Hierarchicalmultiple regression analyses supported a hypothesized quadraticinteraction between problem-focused coping and the outcomes ofachievement and lifetime adaptation, with this form of copingmost strongly related to adjustment (positively) at moderate levelsof combat exposure. One aspect of emotion-focused coping, theuse of wishful thinking, likewise interacted in a quadratic mannerfor the dependent variable of achievement, exhibiting itsstrongest association with adjustment (negatively) at moderatelevels of combat exposure. The importance of interactionsbetween coping and stressors, especially quadratic interactions,is emphasized.

Key Words: coping • traumatic stress • trauma • quadratic interaction • veterans • adjustment


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