DISAGREEMENT: DISCREPANCY OF COPING MECHANISMS BETWEEN SINGLE AND MARRIED MALAYSIAN YOUTHS

Disagreements in human interactions are a common feature of communication. When people interact and establish relationships, they inevitably engage themselves with agreements and disagreements. Purposeful disagreements can yield discussions that could lead to better decisions and other positive outcomes. Focussing on the coping mechanisms used after disagreements, a questionnaire was administered on 722 single and married Malaysian youths aged between 19 and 25 years old. SPSS version 18.0 was used to analyse data. Data suggest that as high as 90% of respondents experience disagreements on a weekly basis with parents, siblings, friends, bosses, colleagues or strangers. Findings indicate that married youths had a tendency to self-reflect, interact and share their feelings with a third party while single youths tended to react explicitly in resolving issues concerning their personal needs and interests with activities. Being aware of this distinctive difference in the two groups of young people can enhance our understanding of the existing coping mechanisms used by ‘others’. Such knowledge may be invaluable to us when resolving disagreements so that we have more control over the situations to avoid conflicts, confrontations and aggressive behaviors.

Keywords: Coping Mechanism, Disagreement, Malaysians, Marital Status, Youth

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