Coping With Loneliness

Abstract

The unpleasant experience of loneliness for children with and without disabilities can be viewed as a source of stress which individuals try to reduce through different coping activities, according to their unique ways of dealing with difficulties. Virtually every attempt to define social competence has highlighted two main criteria that may also be useful in evaluating the different strategies of coping with loneliness: effectiveness and appropriateness (Guralnick, 1992). Competent behavior implies a high degree of successful outcomes, yet does not exclude a lesser extent of some unsuccessful outcomes. In addition, social competence necessitates acknowledgement and acceptance of the reality that success often includes some forms of compromise or modification of one’s original goals.