Coping methods and college adjustment in a sample of U.S. Undergraduate students during the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective: To examine the associations between coping methods and college adjustment among a sample of U.S. undergraduate students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants: We used a sample of 117 undergraduate students between the age of 18–25 years old. Approximately 76% of the sample identified as women and 58% identified as White. Methods: Participants completed online questionnaires that assessed the use of forward-focused coping, trauma-focused coping, and several domains of college adjustment (i.e., academic adjustment, social adjustment, personal-emotional adjustment, and attachment). We used multiple regression to identify the association between coping methods and college adjustment, using race and gender as control variables. Results: Forward-focused coping methods were significantly and positively related to academic adjustment, social adjustment, and attachment, while and trauma-focused coping methods were significantly and negatively related to personal-emotional adjustment. Conclusions: The use of forward-focused coping methods may be beneficial for undergraduate students during the COVID-19 pandemic.