Coping
Coping styles
28 questions · 8 min
This questionnaire looks at 14 different ways people deal with stress, such as taking action, planning, seeking comfort from others, using humour or taking your mind off things. Each way of coping gets its own result.
There’s no single right way to cope, and no overall score. Most people use a mix, and what helps depends on the situation.
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What it shows
Which of 14 ways of coping you’ve been using most and least lately.
What it doesn’t
An overall coping score, a diagnosis, or a judgement of whether your coping is right or wrong.
Who it’s for
This test may help if you’re going through a stressful time, such as pressure at work, a health worry, a break-up or a loss, and want to step back and see how you’ve been dealing with it. It shows the ways of coping you lean on most, and some you might be using less.
It can also be a useful starting point for a conversation with a counsellor or therapist about what helps you and what doesn’t.
Questions people ask
What does the Brief COPE measure?
It looks at 14 ways of dealing with stress: taking your mind off things, taking action, not believing it, using alcohol or drugs, comfort from others, advice and help from others, giving up, letting feelings out, seeing the positive side, planning, using humour, accepting what happened, faith and spirituality, and blaming yourself. You see which ones you’ve been using most and least lately.
How long does the Brief COPE take?
There are 28 statements, and most people finish in about 8 minutes. You answer with the main thing that’s been stressful for you lately in mind.
How is the Brief COPE scored?
Each way of coping has two statements, each scored from 1 to 4, so each gets a score from 2 to 8. There’s no overall score, as the author advised, and no official cut-offs.
Is there a right way to cope?
No. Most people use a mix, and what helps depends on the situation. The result describes what you’ve been doing, not whether it’s right or wrong, and it isn’t a diagnosis.
How often can I retake it?
About once a month. The way you cope often changes with what’s going on in your life, so taking it again can show how things are shifting.
What if coping feels hard right now?
Talking to someone you trust, your doctor or a counsellor can help you find a way through. If you might hurt yourself, call your local emergency number now. You can find free, confidential helplines at findahelpline.com.
Where it comes from
Developed by psychologist Charles Carver in 1997 as a shorter version of a longer coping questionnaire.
Brief Coping Orientation to Problems Experienced inventory
On iPhone or iPad?
Sprout is an app there too, and this link opens the test straight away if you have it.
Coming soon to the App Store