Depression and Estimated Functional Aerobic Capacity in Young Women: The Good and the Bad of John Henryism Active Coping

Abstract

The present study assessed the moderating role of depressive symptomology in the interactive role of John Henryism (i.e., persistent striving with daily psychosocial demands) and father's educational attainment in estimated cardiorespiratory fitness in women. Two hundred one female Midwestern college students completed online psychosocial surveys. Among high‐John Henryism women who were depressed, higher father's education levels predicted better fitness. Conversely, higher father's education predicted worse fitness for nondepressed low‐John Henryism women. Depression may moderate the role of John Henryism and socioeconomic status in health, with higher John Henryism and education associated with optimal health for depressives.

Perceptions of Intragroup Rejection and Coping Strategies: Malleable Factors Affecting Hispanic Adolescents’ Emotional and Academic Outcomes

“…For example, the phenomenon labeled “John Henryism active coping”—based on the anecdote of a worker who died from exhaustion—refers to the use of continuous high effort in cases in which psychosocial stressors exceed the individual’s coping resources (Haritatos et al 2007). Among low SES individuals facing significant barriers to economic success, John Henryism active coping has been linked to an increased risk for medical problems and depressive symptoms (Merritt and Dillon 2012; Neighbors et al 2007). A meta-analysis of 43 studies indicated that active coping predicted better outcomes only over the long-run, but that the effects were not strong enough to clearly favor it over avoidant coping (Suls and Fletcher 1985).…”

Dimensions of self-selected leisure activities, trait coping and their relationships with sleep quality and depressive symptoms

“…'John Henryism' active coping emphasises how striving through daily stress with poor chances for successful outcomes can lead to excess cognitive and emotional activation, and in turn augments risk for medical disorders like depression (Merritt & Dillon, 2012). In contrast, with more resources, active coping shields one from these risks, likely helping us get the most positive leisure outcomes.…”

High-Effort Coping and Cardiovascular Disease among Women: A Systematic Review of the John Henryism Hypothesis

“…Seventeen studies were conducted in various geographical areas of the U.S. [15-17, 19-25, 27, 29-34], while four international study populations were included [one Nigerian [18] and three Dutch [14,26,28] studies]. Seven studies included multiracial samples of women [16,17,21,24,29,32,34], three of which presented sex-specific results according to race [17,24,32]. Eight studies were conducted among women only [21,24,26,[29][30][31][32][33].…”

“…As previously discussed, the central tenant of the John Henryism hypothesis is the interaction between high-effort coping and SES, as variously defined by participant education, income, occupation, parental education or income, or childhood SES. Among the included studies, 10 explicitly examined the interaction between SES and John Henryism on blood pressure/ hypertension prevalence [14-19, 22, 30], nicotine dependence [20], cardiorespiratory fitness [21], or metabolic syndrome [23] in study populations inclusive of women (Table 1). Of these, three reported associations in the direction predicted by the John Henryism hypothesis [19,21,23].…”

“…Among the included studies, 10 explicitly examined the interaction between SES and John Henryism on blood pressure/ hypertension prevalence [14-19, 22, 30], nicotine dependence [20], cardiorespiratory fitness [21], or metabolic syndrome [23] in study populations inclusive of women (Table 1). Of these, three reported associations in the direction predicted by the John Henryism hypothesis [19,21,23]. Fernander et al [19] measured education, income, and John Henryism among 55 middle-aged African-American women and 69 African-American men living in an urban Florida area and reported that the combination of high John Henryism and low education was associated with higher blood pressure among African-American women.…”