Abstract:

The way adolescents face their problems, reported in the psychology literature as coping strategies, has been studied in many different cultures, demonstrating that there is wide variety of attenuating behaviors or experiences of stress used in adverse situations. In this sense, the aim of this study is to explore the relationship between personality factors, stress symptoms, coping strategies and general health. Participants were 67 Angolan adolescents, from both sexes, (32, 47.8.6% girls and 35, 52.2% boys), aged 17 to 20 years old (µ=19±0.78). These adolescents are fellows of the program of scholarships abroad and were attending a preparation course for higher education in Portugal. The measures administered were the Neo Personality Inventory - Revised (McCrae & Costa, 1992; adapted version by Lima, 1997), Stress Symptoms Questionnaire (Francisco, Pereira, & Pereira, 2003); Coping Strategies Questionnaire (Francisco, Pereira, & Pereira, 2003) and the General Health Questionnaire (Goldberg, 1981; adapted version by McIntyre, McIntyre & Redondo, 1999). Data showed that there seems to be no relation between personality and symptoms of stress, coping strategies and overall health. In turn, there seems to be a relationship between cognitive symptoms and depression, as well as, coping strategies focused on individual and depression. Furthermore, results demonstrate that Angolan boys seem to have more stress symptoms and cognitive symptoms of physiological stress than girls. Results are discussed in relation to Angolan education and culture.

Keywords:

Personality factors, stress symptoms, coping strategies, general health, Angolans.