The environment of poverty has been implicated as a major risk factor for later childhood adjustment and achievement. The present study examined the effect of exposure to poverty at age 8 on coping at age 13 using measures of coping and family income-to-needs ratio. Additionally, temperament at age 8 was examined as a potential moderator of the relationship between poverty and adolescent coping. The study hypothesized that exposure to poverty at age 8 would predict adolescent?s use of disengagement coping strategies (e.g., avoidance, distraction, or inaction). Temperament was predicted to moderate the relationship between poverty and disengagement coping strategies. Results of regression analyses indicated that exposure to poverty at age 8 predicted adolescent inaction in response to stress. Furthermore, the relationship between poverty status at age 8 and distraction at age 13 was moderated by temperament (age 8).