Psychological harassment at work - Study of links between the kind of coping the most used and the intensity of depression

Introduction
The aim of the research is to study within a population having been the target of psychological harassment at work, the existing relations between the kind of coping the most used (coping centered on emotion // centered on research for social support) and the intensity of depression. 

Methods
The participants are 45 patients of the consultation “Suffering and work” of the hospital Hôtel-Dieu who completed 3 questionnaires of self-assessment: the French version of the “Leymann inventory of psychological terror”, the French version of the "Ways of Coping Check List" by Folkman and Lazarus and “Beck’s abbreviated inventory of depression”. Data were analyzed using Pearson’s test of correlation.

Results
There is a significant correlation between the fact of using mainly strategies of coping centered on emotion and the intensity of depression [(r ~ 0.49; p=0.0007)]. In addition, the more the strategies of coping centered on research for social support are used, with regard to the other strategies of coping, the more the level of depression is significantly low [(r ~ - 0.34; p=0.02)]. 

Discussion
A more important use of strategies of coping centered on emotion, with regard to the other strategies of coping, in order to face stress ensuing from psychological harassment at work could be a risk factor for severe depression. A privileged use of strategies of coping centered on research for social support compared with the other existing strategies seems, on the contrary, to play a moderating role on the intensity of depression. Massive and premature use of this kind of strategy of adaptation thus could have a beneficial effect on the mental health of the persons being the target of psychological harassment at work.