Short communication: Gender differences in coping with the major external stress of the Washington, D.C. sniper

This study examined the relationship between gender and strategies for coping for individuals faced with a perceived major, life-threatening stressor. The focus here was the sniper(s) that terrorized the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area for over 3 weeks in October 2002. A retrospective survey of 144 random respondents regarding their behavior and coping mechanisms during this period indicated that, overall, women's behavior was affected more than men's. Unexpectedly, most emotion-focused coping mechanisms studied here yielded no significant gender differences. The findings are discussed in light of recent thinking in social psychology on sex-role stereotyping and risk-taking.