Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-dlnhk Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-30T16:10:57.642Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Joint Contribution of Motivation and Coping to Prisoners’ Well-Being

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 October 2018

María Ávila  and
Pilar Sanjuán
María Ávila
Affiliation:
Centro Penitenciario de Teruel (Spain)
Pilar Sanjuán*
Affiliation:
Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (Spain)
*
*Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Pilar Sanjuán. Departamento de Psicología de la Personalidad de la Facultad de Psicología de la Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia (Spain). Calle Juan del Rosal, 10, Ciudad Universitaria. 28040 Madrid (Spain). Phone: +34–913986276. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Motivation and coping are two of the most relevant factors associated to well-being. One of our objectives was to describe the motivation to pursue the personal goals, the coping strategies used to pursue them, and the levels of well-being experienced, in a group of people serving prison sentences (n = 175: 143 males and 32 females). We mainly wanted to study the joint contribution of motivation and coping on their well-being. The results have shown that motivation and coping contribute to the different dimensions of well-being. Specifically, we have found that autonomous motivation (AM) as well as problem solving (PS) and positive cognitive restructuring (PCR) coping positively predict self-acceptance (β = .12, p = .06; β = .17, p < .05; β = .24, p < .01 respectively), purpose in life (β = .12, p = .06; β = .35, p < .001 and β = .24, p < .001 respectively) and positive affect (β = .13, p = .06; β = .29, p < .001 and β = .28, p < .001 respectively). Personal growth was positively predicted by AM (β = .21, p < .01) and PCR coping (β = .21, p < .01), and negatively by avoidance coping (β = –.16, p < .05). Negative affect was positively predicted by social support (β = .16, p < .05) and avoidance (β = .42, p < .001) coping. None of the variables analyzed predicted life satisfaction. The results suggest that well-being promotion programs in prison settings should encourage the pursuit of goals by AM and the use of PS and PCR coping to achieve these goals.

Keywords

copinginmatesmotivationpsychological well-beingsubjective well-being
Type
Research Article
Information
The Spanish Journal of Psychology , Volume 21 , 2018 , E46
Copyright
Copyright © Universidad Complutense de Madrid and Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos de Madrid 2018 

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Banerjee, A., Chitnis, U. B., Jadhav, S. L., Bhawalkar, J. S, & Chaudhury, S. (2009). Hypothesis testing, type I and type II errors. Industrial Psychiatry Journal, 18, 127–131. https://doi.org/10.4103/0972-6748.62274CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ben-Zur, H., & Zeidner, M. (2012). Appraisals, coping and affective and behavioral reactions to academic stressors. Psychology, 3(9), 713–721. https://doi.org/10.4236/psych.2012.39108CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blevins, K. R., Listwan, S. J., Cullen, F. T., & Jonson, C. L. (2010). A general strain theory of prison violence and misconduct: An integrated model of inmate behavior. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 26(2), 148–166. https://doi.org/10.1177/1043986209359369CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carver, C. S. (1997). You want to measure coping but your protocol’s too long: Consider the Brief COPE. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 4(1), 92. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327558ijbm0401_6CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., & Weintraub, J. K. (1989). Assessing coping strategies: A theoretically based approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56(2), 267–238. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.56.2.267CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Caunt, B. S., Franklin, J., Brodaty, N. E., & Brodaty, H. (2013). Exploring the causes of subjective well-being: A content analysis of people’s recipes for long term happiness. Journal of Happiness Studies, 14, 475–499. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-012-9339-1CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Díaz, D., Rodríguez-Carvajal, R., Blanco, A., Moreno-Jiménez, B., Gallardo, I., Valle, C., & van Dierendonck, D. (2006). Spanish adaptation of the Psychological Well-Being Scales (PWBS). Psicothema, 18(3), 571–576.Google Scholar
Diener, E., Kanazawa, S., Suh, E. M., & Oishi, S. (2015). Why people are in a general good mood. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 19(3), 235–256. https://doi.org/10.1177/1088868314544467CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Diener, E., Suh, E. M., Lucas, R. E., & Smith, H. L. (1999). Subjective well-being: Three decades of progress. Psychological Bulletin, 125(2), 276–302. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.125.2.276CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Estes, R., & Sirgy, M. (2017). The pursuit of human well-being: The untold global history. Dordrecht, The Netherlands: Springer.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gullone, E., Jones, T., & Cummins, R. (2000). Coping styles and prison experience as predictors of psychological well-being in male prisoners. Psychiatry, Psychology and Law, 7(2), 170–181. https://doi.org/10.1080/13218710009524983CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hortop, E. G., Wrosch, C., & Gagné, M. (2013). The why and how of goal pursuits: Effects of global autonomous motivation and perceived control on emotional well-being. Motivation and Emotion, 37, 675–687. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-013-9349-2CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Huey, M. P., & McNulty, T. L. (2005). Institutional conditions and prison suicide: Conditional effects of deprivation and overcrowding. The Prison Journal, 85(4), 490–514. https://doi.org/10.1177/0032885505282258CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kasser, T. (1996). Aspirations and well-being in prison setting. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 26(15), 1367–1377. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.1996.tb00076.xCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York, NY: Springer.Google Scholar
Lindquist, C. H. (2000). Social integration and mental well-being among jail inmates. Sociological Forum, 15(3), 431–455. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007524426382CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Listwan, S. J., Colvin, M., Hanley, D., & Flannery, D. (2010). Victimization, social support, and psychological well-being. A study of recently released prisoners. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 37(10), 1140–1159. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854810376338CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Litman, J. A., & Lunsford, G. D. (2009). Frequency of use and impact of coping strategies assessed by the COPE Inventory and their relationships to post-event health and well-being. Journal of Health Psychology, 14(7), 982–991. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105309341207CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
López-Gómez, I., Hervás, G., & Vázquez, C. (2015). Adaptación de la Escala de Afecto Positivo y Negativo (PANAS) en una muestra general española [Adaptation of the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) in a Spanish general simple]. Psicología Conductual, 23(3), 529–548.Google Scholar
Lyubomirsky, S., Sheldon, K. M., & Schkade, D. (2005). Pursuing happiness: The architecture of sustainable change. Review of General Psychology, 9(2), 111–131. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2680.9.2.111CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mefoh, P., Okafor, A., Ezeah, E., & Odo, V. (2015). Relationship between coping strategies and psychological wellbeing of Enugu (Nigerian) prison inmates. European Journal of Social Sciences, 47, 270–277.Google Scholar
Ministerio del Interior Español (2016). Anuario estadístico del Ministerio del Interior Español 2015 [Statistical Yearbook of Ministry of Home Office Affairs 2015]. Retrieved from http://www.interior.gob.es/web/archivos-y-documentacion/anuario-estadistico-de-2015Google Scholar
Morán, C., Landero, R., & González, M. T. (2010). COPE–28: A psychometric analysis of the Spanish version of the Brief COPE. Universitas Psychologica, 9(2), 543–552.Google Scholar
Pavot, W., & Diener, E. (1993). Review of the Satisfaction with Life Scale. Psychological Assessment, 5, 164–172. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-2354-45CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Picken, J. (2012). The coping strategies, adjustment and well-being of male inmates in the prison environment. Internet Journal of Criminology, 1-29. Retrieved from https://studylib.net/doc/8657392/the-coping-strategies--adjustment-and-well-being-of-male-Google Scholar
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68–78. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ryff, C. D. (2014). Psychological well-being revisited: Advances in the science and practice of eudaimonia. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 83, 10–28. https://doi.org/10.1159/000353263CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sanjuán, P., & Ávila, M. (2016). Afrontamiento y motivación como predictores del bienestar subjetivo y psicológico. Revista de Psicopatología y Psicología Clínica, 21, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.5944/rppc.vol.21.num.1.2016.15401CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shah, K. N., Majeed, Z., Walck, D., & Lin, F. V. (2017). Enhancing autonomous motivation mediates well-being improvement in HIV-infected older adults. Innovation in Aging, 1, 1167. https://doi.org/10.1093/geroni/igx004.4255CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sheldon, K. M., & Elliot, A. J. (1998). Not all personal goals are personal: Comparing autonomous and controlled reasons as predictors of effort and attainment. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 24(5), 546–557. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167298245010CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sheldon, K. M., Ryan, R. M., Deci, E. L., & Kasser, T. (2004). The independent effects of goal contents and motives on well-being: It’s both what you pursue and why you pursue it. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30(4), 475–486. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167203261883CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, A. L., Ntoumanis, N., Duda, J. L., & Vansteenkiste, M. (2011). Goal striving, coping, and well-being: A prospective investigation of the self-concordance model in sport. Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology, 33(1), 124–145. https://doi.org/10.1123/jsep.33.1.124CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van der Laan, A., & Eichelsheim, V. (2013). Juvenile adaptation to imprisonment: Feelings of safety, autonomy and well-being, and behavior in prison. European Journal of Criminology, 10(4), 424–443. https://doi.org/10.1177/1477370812473530CrossRefGoogle Scholar
van Harreveld, F., van der Pligt, J., Claassen, L., & van Dijk, W. W. (2007). Inmate emotion coping and psychological and physical well-being: The use of crying over spilled milk. Criminal Justice and Behaviour, 34(5), 697–708. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093854806298468CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vázquez, C., Duque, A., & Hervás, G. (2013). Satisfaction with Life Scale in a representative sample of Spanish adults: Validation and normative data. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 16, E82. https://doi.org/10.1017/sjp.2013.82CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Watson, D., Clark, L. A., & Tellegen, A. (1988). Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: The PANAS Scales. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54(6), 1063–1070. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.54.6.1063CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wild, T. C., Cunningham, J. A., & Ryan, R. M. (2006). Social pressure, coercion, and client engagement at treatment entry: A self-determination theory perspective. Addictive Behaviors, 31, 1858–1872. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2006.01.002CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wild, T. C., Newton-Taylor, B., & Alletto, R. (1998). Perceived coercion among clients entering substance abuse treatment: Structural and psychological determinants. Addictive Behaviors, 23, 81–95. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0306-4603(97)00034-8CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Wildeman, C., Turney, K., & Schnittker, J. (2014). The hedonic consequences of punishment revisited. The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 104(1), 133–164.Google Scholar
Wolgast, M., & Lundh, L.-G. (2017). Is distraction an adaptive or maladaptive strategy for emotion regulation? A person-oriented approach. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 39, 117–127. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10862-016-9570-xCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
World Health Organization (WHO) (2013). The European health report 2012: Charting the way to well-being. Copenhagen, Denmark: Author.Google Scholar