Coping with Covid

Aim and Objective: What determines how people coped with the challenges of adapting to the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions and requirements? In four studies, conducted in 2021, groups of European adults (N>1800) noted how they had personally coped with Covid-19. Method: In each study, participants reported on their age, sex and education, their political and religious beliefs, as well as giving self-ratings and completing a number of standard tests on such things as their personality, intelligence and belief in conspiracy theories. Results: In the first study, sex, self-esteem, optimism and intelligence were significant predictors of self-assessed coping. In the second study, only optimism and emotional stability were significant predictors. In the third study, sex, optimism, self-esteem and ratings of change were related to coping. In the fourth study, self-esteem was the only significant predictor. Discussion: The results suggest that optimistic, better adjusted people, with higher self-esteem claim to be better copers. Age, education as well as political and religious beliefs and many personality measures were not related to self-reported coping with Covid-19. Implications for targeting those who require most help were discussed, and limitations were acknowledged.