Handbook of Multicultural Perspectives on Stress and Coping

Has the developing world developed modern concepts of stress? Are coping methods the same around the globe? Such questions are not simple to answer, and until recently, few knew to ask them.

In recent years, Western psychologists have recognized that their prevailing views of psychology do not always translate worldwide—and that no culture has a monopoly on either stress or coping. The Handbook of Multicultural Perspectives on Stress and Coping was created to address this realization. This unique volume moves beyond simple comparisons of behaviors in other countries by clarifying critical concepts in stress and coping, analyzing and synthesizing vast amounts of global data, and identifying constructs and methodologies necessary for meaningful cross-cultural research.

An international, multiethnic panel of forty-five contributors presents elegant studies of stress, survival, and resilience as cultures evolve and countries interact, including:

• Personal transformation as a coping strategy
• Psychological skills that enhance intercultural adjustment
• Individual versus collectivist values in coping
• Buddhist and Taoist traditions in coping
• The cumulative effects of historical, environmental, and political stressors on nations in the Middle East
• Specific cross-cultural perspectives, from Latino-American families to Canadian aboriginal peoples to minority university students

The editors have assembled a vital store of knowledge, raising crucial implications for clinicians working with immigrant/international populations, and evaluating the current state of theory, research, and assessment. The Handbook documents major steps toward scientific advancement—and human understanding.

The breadth of cultural perspectives represented in this handbook is truly extraordinary as well as refreshing. The diversity of the chapters encourages the reader to think about stress and coping in ways that broaden and enrich the mind. The volume is an invaluable resource for stress and coping researchers who want to find new and provocative ways to think about their own research and the research of others.
- Susan Folkman, Ph.D.
Professor of Medicine
University of California – San Francisco

This is a comprehensive collection of papers on a topic of emerging importance in the cross-cultural literature. Stress and coping need to be considered by scholars from differing cultural backgrounds, since adaptation to the inevitable challenges of life must be socialized for all future participants in the cultural drama and this participation will  be shaped by the historical and philosophical traditions informing each of those cultures. The editors have assembled a diverse array of competent scholars from many cultural traditions to address key issues in the literature, and thus provided us readers with the necessary guidance for future comparative research in this fundamental topic area.
- Michael Harris Bond, Ph.D.
President, International Association of Cross-Cultural Psychology

A cross-cultural book on coping has been long overdue and I cannot think of a better editor than Paul Wong to bring such a huge project to fruition. At last, with the publication of the Handbook of Multicultural Perspectives on Stress and Coping, the days of understanding coping without considering cross-cultural factors are over. Every researcher and practitioner who is interested in the topic of coping will want to read this magnificent volume.
- C. R. Snyder, Ph.D.
Wright Distinguished Professor of Clinical Psychology
University of Kansas, Lawrence