Name: Brittany Leatham

Health Topic, Target (can be a primary and secondary target) and Location (must be clearly defined):

Increasing overall wellness by assessing individual quality of life (QOL) in college students attending the
University of Idaho living in Moscow, ID.

NAME: #1 Intervention Website Review

Website and Link:
Helpguide.org Stress Management

APA citation of website:

Robinson, L., Smith, M., Segal, R. (2017, April) Stress Management. Retrieved from www.helpguide.org
General Purpose of the Website
This website provides information to help those who are struggling with personal stress levels and stating that
we are in control of our stressors and how they interrupt our lives.

What did you learn about effective interventions for your topic? Answer the questions below and add
additional comments.
This website is full of tips on how to handle stress in our lives and to take control over those stressors. Stress
level management is very individually based and not all strategies will work for everyone. We internally hold the
tools and resources we need to handle stress but it takes practice to bring these out in ourselves. An important
resource the website discusses is confiding in others whom we hold a healthy relationship with. Possessing
healthy relationships are vital in maintaining a healthy mental state.
This website also presents the intervention of replacing unhealthy coping mechanisms such as alcohol and drug
use, procrastination, unnecessary sleeping with something more healthy and productive. A big intervention
strategy this site focusses on is “practicing the 4 A’s: avoid, alter, adapt and accept”. This strategy helps us
decide how to deal with situations in our lives by taking a step back to address each situation and how to deal
with them in a well thought-out way. Building relationships and maintaining current ones are so important in
maintaining overall happiness. Friends and family can provide advice for us in times of need as well as providing
us with a way to relax and destress. Making a conscious effort to control whatever stressors we have in our lives
is the most vital aspect in stress management.

Critical thinking and relation to your health promotion topic

What did you learn from the website that you can apply to your project? Organize by answering # 1-3 below:
1) Intervention activities that are appropriate for your project, 2) Useful tools and resources, including health
education/promotion resources; 3) Other resources- give web links for at least two other helpful resources the
web page directed you to and write 1-2 sentences about what you was helpful about each site.
Taking a step back to avoid, alter, adapt to and accept stressors live brings us. Avoid people or situations that
create negative thoughts and emotions, alter our perception of situations and events into one that is healthier
and more productive way of management, adapt to situations that cannot be changed by looking at the big
picture and accepting that stress is a normal part of our lives. Another is building new relationships by going out
and trying new things that allow us access to a new surrounding of people and individuals with a common
interest. Exercise is an important stress reliever and the website provides little things we can do to help get us
moving such as parking in a spot further away or taking part physically active activity.

http://www.umm.edu/health/medical/reports/articles/stress This website includes all information possible

needed when learning about stress. The website states what stress is exactly and all types, how it physiologically
alters our bodies, what diseases are prevalent to high stress levels, complications and much more. There is also a
very extensive list of relaxation techniques and how to perform each.
http://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/resources/infopax.cfm?Info_ID=50 Overcoming procrastination reduces stress
so this website is very important to my topic especially since my focus is on college aged students. There are also
interactive modules to work through which provides a tangible factor for kinesthetic users.

#2 Intervention Research Readings

General Intervention Considerations- Answer the following using lectures and readings. 1 paragraph for each.

1. Health Behavior Theory- Identify the theory (or theories) that is most important to guide your
intervention and discuss how that theory will guide interventions. (See Theories at a Glance).

The social-cognitive theory is important to look at with this health topic because it focusses on how
individuals react to others as well as their environments. We as individuals are very influenced by the
environment that we work, go to school and live in. We are also greatly influenced by the people we
surround ourselves with. If those that we surround ourselves are negative and put us in high-stress
situations or negatively impact our mood and daily lifestyle, then we generally will have a lower
perceived quality of life when they are present. The opposite is also true saying that if those in our lives
and the environments that we are in are positive and high energy, we will perceive our QOL to be higher,
more productive and more beneficial. Self- efficacy, self-control and emotional coping ability is assessed
in this type of health behavioral theory. The social-network theory related to this health topic off the
basis of the networking we are involved in and the group(s) we feel we belong in. This theory focusses
on building and maintaining relationships and how we reciprocate our feelings unto others and how well
we integrate these relationships into our lives. We need to feel a sense of belonging and feel as though
we have a group or society to connect to.

2. Spectrum of Prevention- Based on the reading from the Prevention Institute-what levels of prevention
are most important for your topic/target and location? The type/level of change desired will direct you to
types of interventions that will have the most impact.

Strengthening individual knowledge and skills- We need to be knowledgeable on what factors we need
to alter in our lives for the better and be willing to do so. We need to better our understanding on what
we should do to increase our QOL, what it is in our lives that are raising our stress and negativity levels
now, be aware of the resources that are available to us and how to go about incorporating those into
our lives. Promoting community education may be beneficial when we are working with close groups
who influence one another and are integrated in each other’s lives such as church groups and work
environments.

3. Discuss what you learned about the predisposing, enabling and reinforcing factors that are most related
to the health behaviors you are trying to change.

Some predisposing factors that are important when assessing QOL are factors such as social status,
financial status and income levels. Genetics may also affect QOL when assessing things such as mental
illnesses and disease prevalence. Enabling factors that are vital to increasing QOL are having access to
resources available. Resources such as available health resources, parks and recreational spots, relaxing
areas, libraries, adequate education, etc. One of the most important enabling factors would be to have a
supportive group available to you. We need to have healthy relationships in our lives that we can rely and
fall back on.
 #3 RESEARCH ARTICLES– PEER REVEIWED
APA Citation of article

Riet, P., Rossiter, R., Kirby, D., Dluzewska, T., Hammon, C. (January 2015). Nursing Education Today. Piloting a
stress management and mindfulness program for undergraduate nursing students: Student feedback and lessons
learned, 35 (1), 44-49. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2014.05.003

Participants or population reached

Undergraduate nursing and midwifery students

Describe the intervention and its effectiveness

A stress management program and multiple week course was paired with a mindfulness class program for first-
year nursing and midwifery students at a university in Australia (Riet, Rossiter, Kirby, Dluzewska, Hammon,
2015). The study focused on the success of the intervention based on how the students attended to themselves,
how they attended to others and how they attended to challenges that were presented by the university
program that they were enrolled in. The mindfulness and stress-management program overall improved the
students’ sense of wellbeing by positively influencing their sleep patterns and concentration through the course
of their program as well as reducing negative thoughts. This intervention was very affective because it assured
that the nursing students were tending to their personal needs on an emotional and mental health level. This
area of the study showed more of a significant increase than attending to others or attending to challenges. By
becoming self-aware, the students were able to better succeed in the university program.
Limitations that the researchers ran into was that there was low-attendance to the mindfulness classes some
weeks during the duration of the study. However, the majority of the participants expressed an increase in the
areas that were being evaluated. As stated in the research article, a more brief study similar to this could be just
as beneficial.

Critical thinking and relation to your project

 What did you learn from this research/intervention that can be applied to you project?
Something that I have learned while researching this topic is that individuals must focus greatly on themselves
to increase QOL for many reasons. We have to tend to our emotional, mental and physical needs in order to
benefit our relationships, work place, education, and all other aspects that mirror perceived QOL. This study
greatly focusses on being self-aware and being aware of those around you and those whom you must care for.
We also need positive reciprocation in the relationships we are in which is very important to assess.
 What would you need to do to adapt the intervention to fit your population and why?
This study fits my project perfectly because the intervention is focused on college students. Altering the
program that the students are enrolled in might need to be changed either to tend to a more general audience
or altered to fit other specific programs offered at the University of Idaho.

#3 RESEARCH ARTICLES– PEER REVEIWED

APA Citation

Kiken, L., Shook, N. (February 2012). Personality and Individual Differences. Mindfulness and Emotional Distress:
the Role of Negatively Biased Cognition, 52 (3), 329-333. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2011.10.031
Participants or population reached

181 undergraduate college psychology students

Describe the intervention and its effectiveness

In the study conducted by Laura Kiken and Natalie Shook, 181 undergraduate psychology students took part in
assessing mindfulness levels and daily emotional distress in each of the participants’ daily lives. Five different
self-reporting tests were administered to each of the participants which were then evaluated on an individual
level. The tests assessed perception of future events and outcomes, dysfunctional attitudes, depression, anxiety
and how their schedules affect their attitudes whether in a negative or positive light. Through the questioning
asked within each of the tests, the research suggests that focusing on events happening within our daily lives
and increasing self-perception lowers negative attitudes and thoughts. The study concluded that when
mindfulness levels increase, negative thoughts decrease as well as self-reported lower emotional stress.
Mindfulness also decreases symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Mindfulness was not manipulated in this study which was considered a limitation but allows for a real-world
situation where participants were not biased in their answers to fit the study’s proposed outcome.

Critical thinking and relation to your project

 What did you learn from this research/intervention that can be applied to you project?

Using the multiple tests that were used in this study could be beneficial to use when working with individuals
relating to my health topic. Self-reporting measures are the most effective when assessing QOL because
individual perception is what needs to be evaluated. This study provides a great base-line to build possible
interventions from because it has assessed major factors which contribute to QOL.

 What would you need to do to adapt the intervention to fit your population and why?

Since the population in this study addressed college age students, it would be beneficial exactly as is. Applying
this study to other populations would work well considering the questions remained fairly broad.

Pulling it All Together- 35 pts.

1. Select a performance measure target based on the Healthy People 2020 objectives or Healthy Campus
2020 as appropriate.

Reduce the proportion of students by 2.7% (from 27.4-24.7%) by 2020 who report that their academic
performance was adversely affected by stress in the past 12 months.

2. Deciding on strategies for interventions

Social Media Change

 Create a Facebook group available to University of Idaho students informing them of how important
assessing QOL is, available resources at the university and upcoming events that could contribute to
individual and group QOL.

 Utilize the university’s current social media platforms such as Instagram, Twitter and Snapchat to get
relevant information out to the students that access these platforms. This would inform a wider range of
students outside of the previously mentioned Facebook group.
  Design a message through an advertisement to distribute around campus that targets college students.

 Hold instructional seminars free to students to educate them how to use current resources available
(websites, cell-phone applications, social media platforms, magazines, etc.) that could help increase QOL
by decreasing stress, increasing mindfulness, providing relaxation techniques, etc.

Behavioral Change Among Students in Greek Houses and Dormitories

 Create (or maintain existing) mandatory study hours that all students must complete on a weekly basis.
This will reduce academic related stress by possibly decreasing procrastination.

 Create a “benefit program” for students who frequently visit the Student Recreation Center and other
physical activity classes around campus. Providing a prize or reward for students can help motivate
students into being more active.

 Promote club organization and make it easy for students to make a club or a student group of any type.
An easy process will be more desirable and getting together with other students who have a common
interest can help the social aspects of their lives.

 Provide events during nights and weekends to allow students to partake in school related events rather
than drinking or participating in more negative behaviors during these times. Ensure events are free for
students and that they are events most students would be interested in. To do this, distribute an email
based survey to ask students what kind of events they would be more likely to go to and try to recreate
the more popular requests.

Environmental Change

 Provide quiet spaces for students to do homework and study to ensure less distracted studying. These
areas must be available for students only, must be easily accessed, must be abundant around campus and
must have adequate open hours.

 Enforce quiet hours at nights to allow students to relax, unwind and destress in their dorm rooms or
Greek houses. Extend these hours during times of higher stress such as dead week and finals week.

 Provide free activity classes for students. Physical activity is proven to reduce stress levels by allowing for
a release of energy and an increase in endorphins. These classes will be available to students and their
existence will be well known.

 Make spring recruitment and “snapping” more well-known to students who are not affiliated with the
Greek system. Many students living in the dorms or off campus do not know that you can still join a Greek
house throughout the semester or at the beginning of the following semester rather than just joining
when you come to college. Advertising possible tours of Greek houses can get students into a different
living system that they may not be happy with. The opposite should also be available to students in Greek
houses who are unhappy with their living situation. Leaving a Greek house can be expensive so we should
provide those students with a relief system of some kind to help them into the dorms or into an off-
campus living space. (This strategy is an environmental and a behavioral change strategy.)

 Provide more napping spaces on campus where students can go to unwind, relax, take a nap, etc. in a
quiet, warm and comfortable environment. These spaces must be well advertised and more abundant
throughout the University of Idaho campus.
3. Potential for Success- 10 pts (critical thinking questions)

a.) Discuss why your intended approaches would work (e.g., how do they impact predisposing, enabling
or reinforcing factors?) Write no more than 2 paragraphs and cite the literature you used to come up
with your ideas/strategies.
Offering programs that are already set up and implemented encourage students to join in and
incorporate themselves on what is happening at their university. Using strategies such as
developing a survey will help determine what predisposing factors our students are running into
and we can enforce strategies from there. Referencing the helpguide.org website which focusses
on tips to control stress factors has given me the information to provide students with easy steps
they can take in their daily lives. Recreating a mindfulness and stress-management program to
allow students to take part in can recreate findings from the nursing student study (Riet, et al.
2015).

b.) Discuss sustainability of the intervention plan- what will help this work continue?
The University of Idaho is dedicated to student success. Implementing a continuing intervention
plan should be very effective. Vandal Health is a health service offered to students that provide
health services assessing all psychosocial determinant levels. Working with this group will also
provide us with resources that are available to them such as the Student Recreation Center,
University Swim Center, Kibbie Dome, Vandal Health Medical Offices, Athletic Training Center and
many others. Monitoring the progress and success of these interventions during the first years of
its existence will help us track progress and develop a portfolio representing how these
interventions benefit our students to hopefully ensure its continued support.
 References

(August 2009). Put off Procrastinating! Center for Clinical Interventions. Retrieved from
http://www.cci.health.wa.gov.au/resources/

Harvey, S., (January 2013). Stress. University of Maryland Medical Center. Retrieved from
http://www.umm.edu/health/medical/reports/articles/stress

Kiken, L., Shook, N. (February 2012). Personality and Individual Differences. Mindfulness and
Emotional Distress: the Role of Negatively Biased Cognition, 52 (3), 329-333.
http://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2011.10.031

Riet, P., Rossiter, R., Kirby, D., Dluzewska, T., Hammon, C. (January 2015). Nursing Education
Today. Piloting a stress management and mindfulness program for undergraduate nursing
students: Student feedback and lessons learned, 35 (1), 44-49.
http://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2014.05.003

Robinson, L., Smith, M., Segal, R. (2017, April) Stress Management. Retrieved from
www.helpguide.org