The relationship of life event interpretations to helping interactions: a case study

When people seek help for a stressful event, they believe they lack the necessary resources to cope with the event; therefore, they seek those resources. Before deciding which resources are necessary, they must first assign meaning to the event. That meaning affects the helping interaction--the resources sought, helper selected, and relationship with the helper. One case was selected to illustrate the nature of the relationship between the interpretation of a stressful event and the subsequent helping interaction. The discussion of the case focuses on: (a) an illustration of substitution and modeling processes; (b) the desirability dimension as applicable to the prospect, process, and outcome of an event; (c) the function of intimacy in the resolution of a problem event, and (d) the reinterpretation of an event at critical points between the event's occurrence and its resolution.