Welcome to the Centre for Health and Coping Studies.

In our lab, we examine how stress and coping can impact physical and psychological health.

Led by Dr. Anita DeLongis, our research team address the question of  for whom, and under what conditions stress impacts health and the biological, cognitive, and emotional pathways underlying these effects.

Dr. Anita DeLongis’ work addresses topics including:

• The role of close relationships in stress and coping and the dynamic interplay between an individual’s efforts to cope with daily stressors and patterns of social interactions in impacting health and relationship outcomes.
• The range of stressors faced by Canadians, from everyday hassles to marital dissatisfaction and divorce, to physical and mental illness and the impact of such stressors on health and well being.
• The ways in which individuals, couples, and families cope with medical and interpersonal stressors over time and across situations.
• The role of stress and coping as individuals and their families deal with chronic illnesses such as rheumatoid arthritis, spinal cord injury and HIV as well as infectious diseases such as SARS, H1N1, and COVID-19.

Findings from this research promise to aid in the development of treatments for at-risk populations, providing direction to health professionals designing evidence-based interventions that are matched to the needs of individuals and their families.