IB Sports, exercise and health science C.4.2 Coping Key Definitions

Coping is defined by Lazarus and Folkman (1984) as the constantly changing cognitive and behavioral efforts to manage internal or external demands perceived as taxing or exceeding personal resources.

Coping strategies refer to the specific efforts, both behavioural and psychological, that people employ to master, tolerate, reduce, or minimize stressful events

Mental imagery is a cognitive simulation that involves representing sensory information in the mind without a direct external stimulus. It's also known as visualization.

Relaxation techniques refer to a set of practices designed to deliberately reduce muscle tension and mental stress, often used by athletes to manage anxiety and optimize performance by achieving a calm state,

Humans retain an evolutionary stress response similar to animals, activating the sympathetic nervous system in threatening situations. This fight-or-flight reaction increases heart rate and releases epinephrine (adrenaline) to mobilize energy for action.

A stressor is an event or situation that causes a stress response in the body. Stressors can be physical or psychological, and can be internal or external.