Martha is stressed from an overwhelming workload after her charge nurse quit. She decides to apply for another position within the hospital. Which coping approach is she using?

Martha is stressed from an overwhelming workload after her charge nurse quit. She decides to apply for another position within the hospital. Which coping approach is she using?

• A. Assigning the stressor
• B. Avoiding the stressor
• C. Altering the stressor
• D. Adapting to the stressor

Answer: (B)

Coping by avoiding the stressor means removing yourself from the situation that’s causing the stress rather than changing it. Martha’s choice to apply for a different position within the hospital reduces her exposure to the overwhelming workload without trying to alter the workload itself in her current role, so this fits avoidance coping. If she had stayed and asked for more help or reorganized tasks to lessen the workload, that would be altering the stressor—a problem-focused approach. Adapting to the stressor would involve accepting the situation and finding ways to cope within it.

Coping by avoiding the stressor means removing yourself from the situation that’s causing the stress rather than changing it. Martha’s choice to apply for a different position within the hospital reduces her exposure to the overwhelming workload without trying to alter the workload itself in her current role, so this fits avoidance coping. If she had stayed and asked for more help or reorganized tasks to lessen the workload, that would be altering the stressor—a problem-focused approach. Adapting to the stressor would involve accepting the situation and finding ways to cope within it.