5. What young people are doing or not doing for their well-being and health

5.4. Coping behaviour for dealing with stress – a typology

What this is about

Our well-being and health are often impaired by stress: stress at school or work, or family conflict. All of this is bad for us in the long term and we have to find ways of coping with it. We present how young people do just that in this section. There are various different types of young people: some people try not to look at things too closely and seek to distract themselves from their problems – for example by watching TV series, streaming films, taking exercise or doing other pleasant activities. Others go it alone and pursue solutions to their problems, for example by actively changing the stressful situation. Many adolescents and young adults prefer to speak to their parents, friends or life partner about their problems. This can also be helpful. Sometimes, however, the stresses are so great that young people seek help elsewhere, for example via psychotherapy or social counselling centres. For some, all of these options help.

However, these different coping methods can change: young people are developing quickly, and thus also change how they act when handling problems. Ideally, in doing so they will gain vital experience, increase their resilience to pressure, and learn how to deal with life’s difficulties constructively.