Examining coping methods with stressful interpersonal events experienced by muslims living in the United States following the 9/11 attacks

Pargament's (1997) religious coping theory was used to examine the methods of coping with stressful interpersonal events experienced by 138 Muslims living in the United States following the 9/11 attacks. The large majority of participants reported experiencing at least one stressful interpersonal event after the 9/11 attacks related to being Muslim; the most common incidents were hearing anti-Muslim comments, undergoing special security checks in airports, facing discriminatory acts, and being verbally harassed. Participants used both religious (i.e., positive religious coping, negative religious coping) and nonreligious (i.e., reaching out, isolation) methods to deal with these stressful interpersonal events. Positive religious coping and reaching out were related to posttraumatic growth; negative religious coping was associated with depression; and isolation was tied to both depression and angry feelings. The large majority of participants did not view the negative interpersonal events they experienced after the 9/11 attacks as a sacred loss, but a significant percentage did consider these events as a desecration. Further, viewing these incidents as a desecration was tied to posttraumatic growth, but this link was partially mediated by positive coping methods.