Review of Related Literature

Concept of Adversity

Adversity involves exposure to unpropitious or calamitous circumstances. It occurs in

extreme situations such as prolonged combat or natural disasters, both of which affect whole

groups or communities of people simultaneously. Exposure to adversity is not randomly

distributed in society. It can also vary with gender, ethnic or racial background, and

socioeconomic status and some types of adversity are precipitated by an individual's own actions

(Stoltz, 2001). According to Carver (2008), there exits four possible consequences of adversity:

continued downward slide, survival but in a diminished or impaired state, a return to pre

adversity levels of functioning, or surpassing previous levels of function in some manner. The

level of resilience can dictate the academic as well as the personal lives of learners which can

help in showing various consequences in their academics as well as personal lives. The way a

person responds to such adversity is dependent on the relationship of the factors and adversity

itself. These then would elicit their effects on the students.

The factors related to adversity are highly complex and multidirectional. One of the most

important components of adversity is the theory of learned helplessness. Resilience itself is

directly related to an individuals ability to withstand the adversities inherent in todays society

(Dorling, 2007).

Learned helplessness attempts to explain why some individuals succeed in the face of

adverse conditions while others stop or even retreat. Learned helplessness explains why people

give up, it is a definitive barrier to empowerment, once learned, it is easy to justify ones

helplessness, people can be immunized against helplessness which means they will learn never to
give up, optimists respond differently to adversity than do pessimists, males and females are

taught differently and, as a result, tend to respond differently to adversity, learned helplessness

can be taught to others and reinforced later in life. The degree to which people view adversities

will affect their perception of their ability to control their environment and destiny (Stoltz, 2001).

Concept of Stress

According to Selye (2006), stress is a subjective feeling that occurs when an event requires a

change in an individuals behavior, physical status, or cognitions based on his/her personal

appraisal of the environment. When perceived demands of the environment exceed perceived

available resources of the person, that person subjectively feels stress. There is an ongoing

interaction process between people and their environments. As the environment impacts the

person, the person also impacts the environment (Lazarus et.al, 2007).

Concept of Resilience

The concept of resilience is not a new one, although defining it precisely remains a

problem. A number of researchers have identified specific factors such as trusting relationships,

emotional support outside the family, self-esteem, encouragement of autonomy, hope,

responsible risk taking, a sense of being lovable, school achievement, belief in God and morality,

unconditional love for someone to define resilience (Henderson, 2003). Resilience is a universal

capacity that allows a person, group or community to prevent, minimize or overcome the

damaging effects of adversity. In psychology, resilience is generally defined as an individuals

ability to overcome stress and adversity (Laurence, 2009). To be resilient, one must be exposed

to adversity or risk and respond successfully by either returning to or surpassing previous levels

of function. According to Kobasa (2004), a resilient person will view adverse situations as
meaningful and interesting (commitment), sees stressors as changeable (control), and sees

change as a normal aspect of life rather than a threat and views change as an opportunity for

growth (challenge).

Coping Responses

Coping includes a range of emotional regulation strategies, thought processes, and

behaviors. This means that coping is founded in an individuals physiological responses to stress,

their appraisals of events, their attention, and their goals or the outcomes they desire. Coping also

depends on social contexts and interpersonal relationships. Recent conceptualizations of coping

have highlighted the importance of two processes: stress reactions, which are largely involuntary

and might include behavioral and emotional impulses, and action regulation, which are

purposeful and serve to modulate or boost reactivity to stressful events (Skinner & Zimmer-

Gembeck, 2007). Most interventions target intentional ways of coping, but the ability to cope

well depends on coordinating all of these systems under conditions of threat, challenge, or loss

(Lazarus & Folkman, 1984; Skinner & Zimmer-Gembeck, 2007).

Profiles of Coping Strategies in Resilient Adolescents

To understand how resilient adolescents adapt to adverse situations, a study was by

conducted to examine resilient adolescents and their coping strategies. Resilience is the

phenomenon characterized by good outcomes despite serious threats to adaptation and/or

development. The study aimed to identify the coping strategy profiles that distinguish a resilient

group from three other groupsstruggling, competent, and vulnerablespecifically to

differentiate the resilient group from the competent group. Descriptive discriminant analysis

results indicated that resilient adolescents simultaneously utilized not only problem-focused but
also the emotion-focused coping strategies. The competent group primarily used problem-

focused coping, while the struggling group primarily used emotion-focused strategies. Finally,

the vulnerable adolescents used neither problem-focused nor emotion-focused strategies (Baek,

2009).

Risk Factors

Risk factors are defined as any influence that increase the probability of onset, digression to

more serious state, or maintenance of a problem condition (Kirby & Fraser, 2007). Hence a child

is developing within a complex system of relationships affected by multiple levels of the

surrounding environment. The environment is defined as a series of nested structures made up of

the microsystem (the childs immediate environment), the mesosystem (interactions among

microsystem factors), the exosystem (factors in the wider community), and the macrosystem

(consisting of values, laws, customs, etc.).

Protective Factors

Masten (2007) has argued that risk and protective factors are polar opposites, in which

competence decreases as stress increases. However, Rutter (2003) contended that risk and

protective factors interact to produces an outcome when stress is low, protective factors are of

less influence. Howard et al. (2009) argued just as risks have been identified as cumulative,

protective factors seem to have the same cumulative effect in individuals lives. The more

protective factors that are present in a childs life, the more likely they are to display resilience
Resilience in Schools

Schools continue to function as one of the most powerful spaces to capitalize on the resilience of

students (Rutter, 2003). In the book, Resiliency in Schools (1996), Henderson and Milstein

voiced, a call to action to focus on and enhance the development of resiliency is arising not

only from social scientists but also from educators who are beginning to understand the need for

schools to be resiliency fostering institutions for all who work and learn in them. Arguably, the

most frequently cited protective factor evident in resilience research in schools is a caring and

supportive school environment. Echoing these words, additional researchers concurred that a

caring and support ethos (across a childs family, community and school) is the most critical

variable throughout childhood and even adolescence (Masten, 2007).

Summary

Although much progress has been made in the area of resilience research, there is still no

definitive set of factors that constitute risk or protective factors. These could be any variables

shown to increase or decrease the likelihood of a variety of positive or negative outcomes. Risk

factors are often defined as environmental factors that originate in childhood and are sometimes

the opposites of protective factors. Resilience research has identified a multitude of protective

factors, with some of the most prominent being secure attachment style and a health relationship

with an adult during childhood, coherence and genetic factors. Needless to say, some theorists

have critiqued the concept of resilience, pointing to its shortcomings. As indicated in the

literature review, continued research in resilience is dependent on time, context, and individual
being studied. However, case studies and other qualitative methods can provide deeper insights

into the complex dynamics of student relationships with others and their schools and life

experiences. As articulated in review of literature, resiliency lies in the eye of the beholder.

People have various ways to cope up with stress which dictates how resilient they can be. It is

just a matter of strategic planning that helps differentiate between those who cannot adapt and

those can and therefore see stress as an opportunity for growth.