Abstract: People face various psychosocial stressors on a daily basis, which are important factors in the development and maintenance of depression. However, most people who are exposed to stress do not develop depression, which is partly due to the adaptive mechanisms. In particular, these mechanisms include coping behavior. Almost 20 years have passed since the last review addressing the issue of coping and depression of patients with affective disorders, many studies have been conducted in the field of coping and depression. In this regard, there is a need to update and systematize scientific data for a deeper understanding of the features of the depressive state of patients with affective disorders. The aim of the study is to identify and summarize existing scientific data on the features of coping behavior of patients with depression within the framework of affective disorders. To achieve this goal, a systematic review of the literature was conducted. The review used two search strategies: systematic electronic database search (PubMed, Google Scholar, and eLibrary.Ru ) and manual article search. 42 articles were found: 27 publications with cross-sectional design and 15 papers with longitudinal design. It was revealed that the symptoms of depression are negatively associated with problem-oriented coping and emotionally-oriented coping aimed at involving stress in a situation. Avoidant coping is directly related to the symptoms of depression and predicts its development. Only one study has been identified where coping was considered as a risk factor for depression of healthy people. The results of two studies have shown that coping mediates the relationship between childhood abuse and depression. It was revealed that the coping profile of patients with affective disorders differs from the profile of healthy people: the predominance of avoidance strategies and the low severity of problem-oriented coping. There are not enough studies comparing different clinical groups on coping strategies. In addition, the gender specificity of coping and the relationship of coping with age characteristics are considered. It is noted that researchers use different methods of coping assessment, which makes it difficult to analyze, summarize and compare data. There are also no studies on the interaction of coping strategies and personality traits.

Keywords: coping strategies, coping, unipolar depression, depressive disorder, depressive symptoms, symptoms of depression, depression, mood disorders, affective disorders, coping behavior