Abstract: Coping is among the most widely studied topics in contemporary psychology. This paper gives an overview of the main theories of coping research and the questionnaires based on different approaches. The five studying approaches in coping research are proposed: the process approach, the trait approach, the cognitive thinking approach, the coping ability approach, and the specific-situation approach. In the end, the methodological challenges, theoretical advances and clinical applications for future research on stress and coping are discussed

Key words: coping, self-report questionnaire, process theory, trait theory, research approach