Does Believing in Fate Facilitate Active or Avoidant Coping? The Effects of Fate Control on Coping Strategies and Mental Well-Being

Wesley C. H. Wu, Sylvia Xiaohua Chen and Jacky C. K. Ng
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Wesley C. H. Wu: Department of Applied Social Sciences, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
Sylvia Xiaohua Chen: Department of Applied Social Sciences, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
Jacky C. K. Ng: Department of Counselling & Psychology, Hong Kong Shue Yan University, Hong Kong, China

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 17, 1-20

Abstract: The development of control-related constructs has involved different approaches over time, and yet internal and external locus of control are conceptualized as dichotomous factors influencing active versus avoidant coping strategies. While external control is associated with avoidance, a similar belief construct fate control, which denotes that life events are pre-determined and influenced by external forces but predictable and alterable, challenges the assumption of incompatibility between fate and agency. To develop a dynamic model of control, we suggest that external control would affect avoidant coping, which in turn would affect psychological distress, whereas fate control would affect both active and avoidant coping when dealing with stress. The model was supported among Hong Kong Chinese using a cross-sectional approach in Study 1 ( n = 251) and hypothetical stressful scenarios in Study 2 ( n = 294). The moderating effect of perceived controllability was observed in coping behaviors using a diary approach in Study 3 ( n = 188). Our findings offer an alternative perspective to the dichotomous view of control and provide implications for coping strategies and mental well-being.

Keywords: social axioms; fate control; locus of control; coping; mental well-being (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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