Are older workers more active copers? Longitudinal effects of age‐contingent coping on strain at work
基于生命全程控制理论，研究老年员工是否比年轻员工更常使用积极的问题聚焦和情绪聚焦应对策略，以及这些策略如何影响工作压力，发现积极问题聚焦应对能解释年龄差异对压力的影响，而回避应对的效果受工作控制调节。
Summary This study addresses coping processes as explanation of age‐related differences in strain experience. Based on the life‐span theory of control, we posit that older workers employ more active problem‐focused and more active emotion‐focused coping strategies than younger workers, which should mediate age effects on strain at work. The correlation between age and passive avoidance coping, in contrast, is expected to be qualified by external resources such as job control. Hypotheses were tested in a two‐wave panel study (8 months lag) with 634 workers (age range 16–65 years). Job demands were considered as control variables. As predicted, older as compared with younger workers reported more active problem‐focused coping, which mediated age differences on strain in the longitudinal analysis. No mediation was found for active emotion‐focused coping. Moreover, age‐contingent effects of passive avoidance coping were moderated by job control. When job control was low, younger as compared with older workers reported more avoidance coping, which in turn decreased strain in the longitudinal analysis. Finally, reverse longitudinal effects of age‐contingent strain on active problem‐focused and active emotion‐focused coping provide initial evidence for age‐contingent resource spirals. Together, the results reveal specific strengths of older workers for stress management at work. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.