Measuring coping in a pre-school population

Abstract

When it comes to measurement and evaluation, there is no ‘one size fits all’ approach. Measurement may have a purpose that goes beyond data gathering and has applications that benefit a population. The benefits and pitfalls of measurement, particularly as it applies to children, are considered in this chapter. Firstly, adult coping constructs are introduced as it is considered important that adults, be they teachers or parents, be familiar with coping language and consider their own coping prior to working with children in their charge. However, a growing body of research suggests that coping in young children does not align with the common adult taxonomies of problem-focused versus emotion-..