Cognitive Therapy and Research, VoL 7, No. 1, 1983, pp. 93-98
Self-Control Behaviors and Coping with
Seasickness
Michael Rosenbaum I and Arnon Rolnick
Tel-A viv University and The Sch wartz Research Center
The study examined the relations between subjects" general repertoire
of self-control behaviors and their ability to cope with seasickness. Based
on peer evaluations, sailors of the Israeli Navy were divided into "seasick"
and "'not seasick" groups. Each of these groups was further divided into
high self-controllers (HSC) and low self-controllers (LSC) on the basis of
their scores on Rosenbaum's Self-Control Schedule. Performance deficits as
a consequence of a stormy sea were assessed by a peer evaluation technique.
As expected, (a) HSC seasick subjects had fewer performance deficits
than LSC seasick subjects, and (b) HSC seasick subjects reported using
more extensively self-control methods to cope with seasickness than did
LSC seasick subjects. These differences were not observed between HSC
subjects and LSC subjects in the not-seasick group. HSC subjects did
not differ from LSC subjects in their susceptibility to seasickness. These
findings highlight the importance of cognitive skills in the process of coping
with physically stressful situations.
There is growing evidence that individuals who were trained to use various
self-control skills cope effectively with stressful situations (Goldfried, 1980;
Meichenbaum, 1977). On the basis of this literature, Rosenbaum (1980a)
developed a self-report measure, the Self-Control Schedule (SCS), that
assesses the general repertoire of self-control behavior of an individual and
his/her inclination to employ it when faced with everyday problems.
The following content areas are covered by the SCS: (a) use of cognitve
and "self-statements" to control emotional and physiological responses;
(b) application of problem-solving strategies (e.g., planning, problem
'Address all correspondence, including requests for an extended report of this study, to Dr.
Michael Rosenbaum, Department of Psychology, Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv 69978, israel.
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0147-5916/83/0200-0093503.00/0 ©1983 Plenum Publishing Corporation