Coping and Ego Depletion: Recovery After the Coping Process

Abstract

In this chapter, we combine a new approach to the self with a traditional, standard idea about coping in order to understand the coping process. The central idea is that many operations of the self involve the consumption of a limited resource. This resource is used in volition (e.g., choice, responsible decision-making, and active responses) and self-control. Stress makes severe demands on this resource, because people must engage in active responding and must regulate themselves so as to adapt to difficult circumstances. One major consequence of stress is that the resource becomes depleted. This will impair the person\u27s functioning across a broad spectrum of activities. For the person to recover, therefore, this resource must be replenished . Although it has been recognized previously that coping with stress consumes resources (e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4), our analysis differs in that it offers more in-depth insight into the nature of this resource