Analyzes the role of personal stress and coping processes from the perspective of a cognitively oriented theory developed by RS Lazarus and colleagues, beginning in 1951. Believing that an event is controllable does not always lead to a reduction in stress or to a positive outcome, and believing that an event is uncontrollable does not always lead to an increase in stress or to a negative outcome. The present author shows how 2 forms of control, generalized beliefs about control and situational appraisals of control, fit into the overall model of Lazarus and colleagues. Situational appraisals of control are explored, especially as they relate to health matters. The theoretical formulation of stress and coping is drawn on to examine 3 important issues:(a) how believing one has control in a stressful transaction can heighten threat,(b) the relationship between control and coping, and (c) pathways through which control can affect the adaptational outcomes of stressful encounters.(88 ref)(PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)