Coping has long been studied alongside social support. In 1984, Lazarus and Folkman
conceptualized the transactional stress model, which asserts that social support influences
outcomes post-stressor by impacting an individual‟s appraisal of negative events; the appraisal of
events then facilitates coping, which generates various outcomes. Higher levels of social support
are believed to spur use of better coping strategies, resulting in more positive outcomes (Lazarus
& Folkman, 1984; Schwarzer & Knoll, 2007). According to DeLongis and Holtzman (2005),
social support may influence coping in a number of ways, including social referencing and direct
provision of information related to the efficacy of particular coping strategies. Studies suggest
that individuals who endorse greater satisfaction with perceived social support also endorse
greater use of more adaptive ways of coping (DeLongis & Holtzman, 2005). In regards to
specific types of coping, research indicates that negative and hostile coping responses, as well as
coping characterized by disengagement, are related to maladjustment following stressful
situations (Calvete & Connor-Smith, 2006).