Coping Strategies in the Medical Profession and Their Differentiation by Socio-Demographic Factors

Coping is a common part of almost every profession. In particular, professions whose basis is interpersonal situations require a high level of ability to handle demanding situations. Above all, work in healthcare is challenging mainly because its success and goal attainment are determined by the ability of healthcare professionals to effectively solve social situations. The work of healthcare workers is based on expertise, altruism, and the ability to respond appropriately in every situation. Physicians are healthcare workers who are repeatedly exposed to many demanding situations, since they are often the first ones to deliver emotionally difficult negative news, during which difficult situations often arise. Coping with burden in the medical profession is influenced by a combination of individual factors (age, gender, personality traits, etc.) and organizational-context factors (type of workplace, workload, shift work). In this regard, Obeng Nkrumah et al. (2025) present findings of scoping reviews showing a wide range in the prevalence of burnout, depression, and anxiety among physicians, in which demographic variables (especially gender and age) and work characteristics are shown to correlate strongly with the choice of coping strategies. Other authors (Yan, et al., 2023, Peng, et al., 2022) present findings that demographic variables such as age, gender, education, marital status, place of residence, and professional background clearly influence resilience and quality-of-life domains of healthcare professionals. Empirical findings by Crisana, Pop, Stretea, et al. (2024) indicate that female doctors more often perceive a higher psychological burden and also point to some studies in which the preference for types of coping strategies differs by gender (for example, more frequent use of emotional support among women and lower use among men). These studies explain this by the fact that female physicians usually report greater emotional strain and a greater need for emotional support, while men more often prefer rational coping strategies. The differences, however, should not be interpreted normatively, but in the context of different social roles and expectations. The review results of other authors (Puia et al., 2025) describe coping in problem situations in terms of age, career stage, and learning coping skills, where younger doctors are exposed to abrupt transitions between tasks of medical practice and greater uncertainty. The literature reviews of these authors suggest that with increasing practice, the coping strategy profile stabilizes toward more adaptive forms (for example, active coping, positive reappraisal of previous steps), while in earlier career stages younger doctors may prefer more avoidant strategies.

This means that with growing work experience, physicians tend to show higher levels of self-confidence and more effective burden-coping strategies, while younger physicians more often report a need for support and greater sensitivity to stress. Frias et al. (2025) point to the organizational context of work (hospital vs. ambulatory clinic, public vs. private sector, presence of continuous/shift operation), noting that comparative study results suggest that healthcare workers in different sectors use different coping approaches, even though basic psychological resilience may not significantly differ between sectors. The same authors also report that organization type (e.g., hospital vs. ambulatory clinic) and shift work significantly influence the overall level of mental burden. Physicians working in continuous operations are exposed to a higher risk of stress and emotional exhaustion, which subsequently affects their ability to manage challenging situations.

Conversely, a more stable work rhythm (e.g., work in ambulatory practice) according to these studies supports better stress regulation. Some authors, in addition to sociodemographics and work organization, assessed coping also from a cultural and value perspective (e.g., spirituality/religiosity), which in some contexts was perceived as a significant source of support when dealing with demanding and emotionally charged situations (Ahmad et al., 2025).

From the analyzed socio-demographic variables, it can be stated that physicians' ability to cope with and resolve demanding work situations is not homogeneous; it is repeatedly determined by multiple characteristics, particularly age, gender, type of healthcare organization, and work organization. Overall, coping with demanding situations in medical practice is complexly conditioned by a combination of individual and organizational factors. Identification of these differences can contribute to better design of support measures, for example through psychoeducation, stress-coping interventions, or systemic changes in work organization.

Methodological framework for analyzing variability in stress-coping mechanisms among physicians according to selected socio-demographic characteristics

The conducted research had a descriptive, cross-sectional, and quantitative design. It focused on analyzing stress-coping strategies in the medical profession and identifying their variations depending on selected socio-demographic characteristics. The main aim of the study was to examine differences in preferred coping mechanisms among healthcare professionals in the context of different socio-demographic factors.

The study sample consisted of 145 healthcare professionals working in the medical profession. Respondents represented a diverse group in terms of age, length of professional practice, job placement, and organizational context, which allowed analysis of differences in coping strategies across multiple socio-demographic variables.

The average age of participants was 30,93 years (SD = 4,69), with age ranging from 25 to 55 years. Total professional practice ranged from 1 to 30 years, with a mean value of 5,73 years (SD = 5,29). Length of tenure at the current workplace ranged from 1 to 15 years, with an average of 4,02 years (SD = 3,15). These data represent a broad combination of early-career, moderately experienced, and longer-serving healthcare workers.

The analysis focused on assessing differences in coping mechanisms among physicians in the context of different socio-demographic variables. For statistical evaluation of these differences, non-parametric Mann–Whitney U and Kruskal–Wallis tests were applied. Collected data were statistically processed and analyzed using PSPP version 25 and Microsoft Excel.

Analysis of the results Assessment of differences in coping strategies by gender

To assess differences in coping strategies between genders, the Mann-Whitney U test was used. The analysis showed statistically significant differences between both genders in two strategies—social support (p = ,024) and problem solving (p = ,040), which were preferred mainly by women. The overview of the results is shown in Table 1 and supplementary descriptive characteristics are in Table 2. The study confirmed that women used social support and problem-solving strategies more frequently compared with men.

Table 1. Differences between ways of coping with demanding situations in the medical profession and gender

Table 2. Description of descriptive characteristics

Assessment of differences in coping strategies by type of organization

To verify differences between the type of organization in which respondents work and the coping strategies used, the Mann-Whitney U test was also used. The results presented in Table 3 did not show any statistically significant differences between the groups.

Table 3. Differences between ways of coping with demanding situations in the medical profession and type of organization

Assessment of differences in coping strategies by shift operation

Through the Mann-Whitney U test we examined whether the use of coping strategies for demanding situations differs depending on whether respondents work in shift or non-shift operation. The results shown in Table 4 did not reveal any statistically significant differences between the observed groups.

Table 4 Differences between ways of coping with demanding situations in the medical profession and shift operation

Assessment of differences in coping strategies by level of education achieved

The Kruskal-Wallis test was used to analyze differences between respondents' education level and their preferences in using coping strategies for demanding situations. The results presented in Table 5 did not show any statistically significant differences between the compared groups.

Table 5. Differences between ways of coping with demanding situations in the medical profession and level of education

Summary of analysis

The comprehensive analysis of differences in strategies for coping with demanding situations in the medical profession produced several important findings. Among the variables assessed—gender, type of organization, shift operation, and achieved education level—only gender proved to be statistically significant in our study. The Mann-Whitney U test pointed to significant differences in two coping strategies: social support and problem solving, with women using these strategies significantly more often than men. This finding suggests that women are more oriented toward actively seeking support and constructively solving burdened situations. Conversely, for the other variables analyzed—type of organization, shift operation, and level of education—the study did not reveal any statistically significant differences in the use of coping strategies for demanding situations. The findings obtained using the Mann-Whitney U test (for organization type and shift work) and the Kruskal-Wallis test (for education level) confirm that these variables are unlikely to play a key role in healthcare workers’ preference for coping strategies.

Discussion

The study focused on examining differences in the use of coping strategies for burdening situations in medical practice in relation to socio-demographic factors. Of the variables analyzed—gender, type of organization, shift operation, and education level—only gender proved to be statistically significant in our study. Mann-Whitney U testing confirmed statistically significant differences in two coping strategies: social support (p = 0,024) and problem solving (p = 0,040). Women used these strategies more often than men. This finding is consistent with research by Czepiel, McCormack, da Sliva (2024), which shows that women naturally tend toward using social support and have a greater tendency to choose a “tend-and-befriend” coping response, based on seeking support and building social bonds. Current studies in healthcare professions likewise confirm that women experience higher levels of psychological burden and more often resort to social support or active stress-coping strategies. International research shows that female physicians were also exposed to a larger number of stressors during periods of increased workload (for example, COVID-19), which supports their more intensive use of adaptive coping mechanisms (Czepiel, McCormack, da Sliva, 2024).

On the contrary, regarding the variables of organization type, shift operation, and level of education achieved, the study found no statistically significant differences in the use of coping strategies. This suggests that structural or organizational conditions in healthcare institutions in our study did not have a significant impact on the choice of burden-coping strategies. This trend corresponds to the study by Jin, Ni, Wang (2025), whose findings suggest that although working conditions influence overall stress levels, the specific type of coping strategies used is more related to individual than organizational factors.

Similarly, the level of education did not influence coping mechanism choice in our study. Guraya et al. (2025) state that coping strategies in healthcare workers are shaped mainly through personality characteristics, stress exposure at work, and emotional resilience, rather than formal academic education.

Jin, Ni, Wang (2025) emphasize the importance of adaptive coping strategies in reducing the effects of stress on mental health. The findings of these authors confirm that positive coping strategies such as active problem solving and planning can effectively reduce the negative psychological impacts of healthcare work. Authors Czepiel, McCormack, da Sliva (2024) state that emotional support plays a crucial role in preventing burnout, which aligns with our finding that women use this strategy more frequently.

Conclusion

The study results indicate that among the socio-demographic variables examined, gender is the most prominent factor influencing ways of coping with burdening situations in the medical profession. Conversely, neither the organization of work nor the level of formal education proved to be determinants that significantly differentiate coping strategies of healthcare workers. These findings may contribute to more targeted design of support interventions aimed at the mental well-being of healthcare professionals. These findings, however, need to be interpreted with the awareness that they are tied to the characteristics of the analyzed sample and cannot be generally applied to the wider population.

Contact: PhDr. Valéria Parová, PhD. Univerzita Pavla Jozefa Šafárika, Lekárska fakulta, Ústav ošetrovateľstva

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