Browsing by Author "Matavelli, Rafaela Dias"
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- Coping as a moderator of the influence of economic stressors on psychological healthPublication . Jesus, Saul Neves de; Leal, Ana Rita; Viseu, João Nuno; Valle, Patrícia; Matavelli, Rafaela Dias; Pereira, Joana; Greenglass, EstherAbstract: Since 2008, there has been a decline in the economy of several European countries, including Portugal. In the literature, it is emphasized that periods of economic uncertainty propitiate the appearance of mental health problems and diminish populations’ well-being. The aim of the present study, with 729 Portuguese participants, 33.9% (n=247) males and 66.1% (n=482) females with an average age of 37 years old (M=36.99; SD=12.81), was to examine the relationship between economic hardship, financial threat, and financial well-being (i.e., economic stressors) and stress, anxiety, and depression (i.e., psychological health indicators), as well as to test the moderation effect of coping in the aforementioned relationship. To achieve these goals, a cross-sectional design was implemented and structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to analyze the obtained data. Our results underline that coping affects the relationship between economic stressors and psychological health since subjects with lower coping levels are more vulnerable to economic stress factors than those with higher coping levels. The moderation effect was more evident in the relationships between economic hardship and stress, anxiety, and depression. The main implications of this study are presented, as well as its’ limitations and suggestions for future research.
- Does coping mediate the effect of financial threat on life satisfaction? A multigroup analysisPublication . Matavelli, Rafaela Dias; Jesus, Saul Neves; Pinto, Patrícia; Viseu, JoãoAbstract: The year of 2007 was marked by one of the most severe global financial crises, which led to an increase of psychopathological symptoms that negatively affected life satisfaction. This research analyzed how financial threat was associated with life satisfaction and how coping, as a mediating variable, influenced this relationship. The theoretical model was tested through a sample of 901 Portuguese individuals, averaging 37 years old (SD=12.86). A structural equation modelling (SEM) was used to obtain the results, by using a multiple-group analysis. Overall, the results showed that financial threat is negatively associated with life satisfaction and that proactive coping strategies have a positive association with life satisfaction. The results obtained from coping as a mediating variable were not significant (considering the total sample). However, when we performed a multiple-group analysis, in the group of individuals with lower levels of financial threat, the mediation effect was statistically significant, showing an almost total attenuation of the crisis’s negative effects on life satisfaction. Thusly, we can infer that the mediating role of coping depends on the level of perceived financial threat. Since periods of financial threat have a negative impact on individuals’ psychological health, coping strategies can mitigate this relationship by decreasing the aforementioned negative impact.