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Ups and down: academic stress and coping strategies among freshman students

A Thesis Proposal

Presented to

the Faculty of the Social Sciences Department

College of Arts and Sciences

ISABELA STATE UNIVERSITY

Echague, Isabela

In Partial Fulfillment

of the requirements for the Degree

BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN PSYCHOLOGY

By

Ivy Joy A. Serrano

Marnellie M. Carag
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Ups and down: academic stress and coping strategies among freshman students

Students were stressed due to shift modality of learning as a result of the hybrid method of

the teaching learning process. The pandemic affected a lot of lives of people all over the world.

This was confirmed by (Probst et al., 2020) when they said that the COVID-19 context, involved

high levels of uncertainty and challenge for individuals globally.

There are numerous methods to reduce stress and burnout, as well as to improve

wellbeing, such as autogenic training, diaphragmatic breathing, biofeedback, progressive muscle

relaxation, educational programs, cognitive behavioral therapy (Holman, Johnson, & O'Connor,

2018; Varvogli & Darviri, 2011).

There are some studies on academic stress and coping was conducted during the pandemic

and during this now normal situation. The researchers became interested to discover the

academic stress and coping strategies of first year students in now normal to discover how they

are affected with the current situation.

This research will be conducted to determine the academic stress and coping strategies among

first year student. Specifically, it seek to answer the following objectives:

academic stress is a risk factor for students’ mental health, the mediating and moderating

mechanisms underlying this relationship are less known. (Shan Jiang, Qiang Ren, Chaoxin Jiang,

Lin Wang 2020). Therefore, students experience the manifestation of psychological stress such

as sleeplessness, anxiety, headache, frustration, irritation, and inability to concentrate on their

studies (Sreeram and Mundada, 2021). The entire educational system has faced enormous

challenges worldwide (Dhawan, 2020). Some study explored the relationship between academic
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stress and coping strategies, and whether psychological distress (general anxiety and depression)

mediate this association. Further, they investigated the potential moderating role of academic

resilience on the relationship between academic stress and psychological distress (Jin-Liang

Wang, Detlef H. Rost, Ren-Jie Qiao, Rebecca Monk 2020).

STRESS AND ITS CAUSES

According to Mofatteh (2021), stress is a common mental health condition among college

students. The main causes of stress among college students are pressure to perform academically,

interpersonal problems, and financial difficulties. The transition from high school to college, the

workload, and summative exams are all college-related issues that affect students' stress levels.

According to past studies, academic issues are the main sources of stress for undergraduate

pharmacy students. The COVID-19 health crisis and its effects on schooling may make students'

already stressful situations worse.

Sampson (2020) asserts that stress can spur motivation and perhaps be necessary for survival.

The fight-or-flight response system in the body instructs a person on when and how to react to

danger. However, it can affect a person's physical and mental health if the body is overly easily

triggered or when there are too many stresses present at once. The body's natural protection

against danger and predators is stress. Hormones that prime the body to avoid or face danger are

released in a deluge when this happens. This is sometimes referred to as the fight-or-flight

response.
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According to Lyness, (2019), humans respond in part physically when faced with a challenge or

threat. In order to either stay and face the threat or flee as quickly as possible, the body mobilizes

resources. The consequences of stress on general health will depend on how a person responds to

a challenging situation. Some people can deal with a number of stressors consecutively or

simultaneously without suffering a major stress reaction. Some people may react to a stressor

more strongly than others. A person who believes they lack the tools necessary to deal would

likely react more strongly, which could lead to health issues. Different people are affected

differently by stressors. Even events that most people would regard to be positive, including

having a child, traveling, moving to a better home, and receiving a promotion at work, can cause

stress.

ACADEMIC STRESS AND THE STUDENTS

According to Yousif (2022), academic stress has a detrimental physiological and social effect on

pupils that may have an impact on their learning and general performance. Developing efficient

counseling solutions to support students' growth and academic and professional achievement will

be made easier with an understanding of prevalence, contributing variables, and coping

mechanisms. Despite the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic in economically affluent nations

prompted numerous studies on scholastic stress. Studies on academic stress and coping

mechanisms in low-income areas with weak internet infrastructure and insufficient mental health

care are, nevertheless, lacking. As a result, the current study aims to evaluate how undergraduate
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pharmacy students at the University of Khartoum perceived academic stress and coping

mechanisms during the COVID-19 epidemic.

Academic stress, as defined by Alsulami (2018), is the body's reaction to pressures associated to

coursework that are greater than what students' capacity for adaptation can handle. According to

estimates, between 10 and 30 percent of students struggle with academic stress at some point in

their academic lives. Academic stress has a significant impact on students attending universities

with high academic standards, it is true. Academic stress was identified as the single biggest

health barrier to college students' academic performance in the American College Health

Association's 2016 study of college students. Of the 97,357 college students who participated in

the survey, 32% reported that academic stress had resulted in an incomplete, dropped course, or a

lower grade. The most commonly reported stressors in the academic environment are related to

oral presentations, academic overload, lack of time to meet commitments, and taking

examinations.

According to Alsulami (2018), stress can get even worse when kids move away from home and

enroll in college for the first time. It has been discovered that psychological symptoms, such as

stress, are frequently experienced by first-year college students. The intensely competitive school

atmosphere present in the preparation years is another factor that causes stress. In a study that

highlights the negative aspects of competition, the authors claim that excessive competitive

behavior or people who feel like they have fallen too far behind may make people more

susceptible to despair, anxiety, and tension. In a different study, Feld looked at the impact of

stress on high-pressure college prep school students and found that damaging physical and
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psychological symptoms of stress and its concomitant unhealthy habits, like overeating and sleep

deprivation, are highly prevalent.

IMPACT OF ACADEMIC STRESS

Deng (2022) thought that while some stress in college and university students is motivating, a lot

of it interferes with instruction. Academic performance can be negatively impacted by excessive

stress, and students who feel they are under a lot of stress may frequently experience depression.

Other mental health issues, including excessive drinking or the indiscriminate use of other drugs,

may develop as a result of this depression. Academic pressures encompass the entire spectrum of

learning and succeeding as well as transitioning to a new setting, where a lot of knowledge must

be processed in what seems like a short amount of time. Moreover, excessive stress may lead a

student to drop out of college. If stress is not dealt with effectively, feelings of loneliness and

nervousness, as well as sleeplessness and excessive worrying, may result. Stress intervention

programs must be designed to address stress in college students. To design effective intervention

programs, it is necessary to identify the stressors specific to college students.

According to Lolandes' (2020) study, students who perceive themselves to be under a lot of

stress may perform poorly in school, experience depression, leave the program early, and

experience major health issues. Effective time management, social support, a positive self-

evaluation, and participation in leisure activities are frequently used strategies to lessen student

stress. Therefore, administrators in higher education may benefit greatly from learning more

about student stress and the coping mechanisms they employ. Although these stressors are

unavoidable for students, their capacity to adapt to demands and manage these stressors is crucial
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for success in the academic and social settings of college. The ability to cope has been seen as a

stabilizing feature that may help people retain their psychosocial adaption throughout stressful

situations. When a person tries to get rid of stress or a perceived threat from the environment,

they are engaging in the very complicated response known as coping. As a result, the response to

an environmental event may be just as significant as the event itself. The person may cope with

stress in a variety of ways, such as by altering the surroundings to remove the stressor, by

learning certain coping mechanisms, or by seeking distraction from the stressor. Researchers

discovered that socioeconomic, ethnic, and even cultural traits affected coping practices. Long-

term ramifications for both your career and personal life could result from failing to address

student stress. Finding the sources of stress among undergraduate nursing students was the main

goal of the current study. We also wanted to establish the most and least popular coping

mechanisms employed by these nursing students in order to see if there were any differences in

the sources of stress experienced by students in different years of nursing school.

Okechukwu (2022) asserts that stress related to completing tertiary education is as common in

society as the need for adequate coping skills, along with worries about unemployment, poverty,

destitution, economic crises, feelings of insecurity, marginalization (including biases), and

economic disempowerment. Failure to cope effectively considerably increases the likelihood that

young people may become estranged from the conventional values and moral laws that appeared

to have previously offered a moral foundation and guide, which might result in suicidal thoughts.

This may explain observations from academics that suicide ideation are more prevalent in

younger age groups.

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COPING STRATEGIES AND MECHANISMS

According to a 2017 study by Arnett, emerging adulthood is the specific developmental stage

that spans late adolescence and young adulthood. Various changes take place during this period

of transition, such as adjustments to social roles, a redefinition of one's identity, the development

of meaningful interpersonal connections, and the beginning of a university or professional career.

Hochberg and Konner (2020) recently demonstrated that emerging adulthood is a life-history

stage that supports humans' high reproductive success, has an evolutionary context and

developmental indicators, and necessitates protection because people are still developing and

learning. These shifts frequently include significant developmental hurdles, which can either

provide possibilities for evolution or, conversely, put young individuals under a lot of pressure

(Roisman et al., 2014). This phase of transition can have an impact on college students' academic

performance (Galbraith & Merrill, 2015; Stallman, 2016), with a significant probability of

dropping out of school (Hunt et al., 2018). Additionally, it may have an impact on their quality

of life and mental health (Goldstein et al., 2015). Many longitudinal studies have shown an

increase in distress among college students (Benton et al., 2016; Ibrahim et al., 2015). Some

studies have also found that distress is particularly burdensome and prevalent in younger

students (Jackson & Finney, 2019; Mahmoud et al., 2014).

Students may employ problem- or emotion-focused coping techniques to deal with this distress

in different ways (Folkman & Lazarus, 2020). Problem-focused techniques, which are more

frequently employed by male students, typically produce favorable or adaptable health and

performance outcomes. Female students are more likely to utilize emotion-focused techniques,

which have the potential to have detrimental or unsuitable effects on their health and
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performance (Brougham et al., 2019; Eaton & Bradley, 2017; Sawhney et al., 2020). A

functional emotion-focused coping strategy, it has been demonstrated in other studies that female

students offset the negative effects of maladaptive emotion-focused coping strategies with

increased social support (Eisenbarth, 2019; Freire et al., 2016; Lawrence et al., 2015). Young

people tend to use more maladaptive coping mechanisms, whereas older people employ more

adaptive ones, according to correlations between the two major coping categories and age

(Cabras & Mondo, 2018; July 2013; Wingo et al., 2015). It's interesting to note that Flannery et

al. (2018) examined gender variations in coping mechanisms during the passage from adolescent

to early adulthood. They discovered that girls reported higher levels of active coping, seeking out

social support, planning, and venting than did boys from middle to late adolescence. After the

ages of 19 to 20, the usage of these methods by male students equalized that of female students,

and gender disparities in humor strategy were only noticeable after the ages of 22. Mahmoud et

al. (2021) also state that some young adults may turn to spiritual guidance as a coping

mechanism, which may have some positive effects on their well-being.

Hypothesis of the Study

The hypothesis of this study are as follows:

1. ) There is no significant difference of the profile variables and academic stress of the

respondents, 2.) There is no significant difference with the profile variables and coping

mechanisms by the respondents and, 3.) There is no significant relationship between the

academic stress and coping mechanisms of the respondents.

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Method

Participants

The participants of this study will be the first year students of BS Psychology, BA

Communication, AB English Language, BS Mathematics, and BS Biology for the 2nd Semester

of S.Y 2022-2023. The selection of the participants will be through the use of random sampling.

Procedure

A survey questionnaire will be given to first-year students of BS Psychology, BS

Communication, BS Math, and BS Biology for the second semester of S.Y 2022-2023. The

research will use the qualitative method and descriptive design as research design because it

discusses the ups and down of academic stress and coping strategies among CAS students. With

the aid of their class officers, the Google Form link will be distributed in each group chat. The

student's participation will be entirely voluntary and unpaid. It may take 5 to 10 minutes to finish

the survey. There were several other measurements taken; some of them were for a different

study and are not further described here. Measures for this study were administered in the

following order: name, course, questions about stress, academic perceptions, perceptions of

stress, and coping style or mechanisms. Google Form automatically collects and tally all the

gathered data. After we conduct and disseminate the said questionnaires, we can come up on the
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conclusion about the experiences and perspective of the students regarding stress, academic

stress, and coping strategies.

Statistical Analysis/tools

The data to be gathered for this study will be subjected to the following quantitative data analysis

treatments: frequency counts and percentage for the profile variables, t-test for significant

differences, and ANOVA for the test of significance relationship.

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APPENDIX A (Academic Stress)

Name: __________________

Gender: ______

Sex: ________

Year: ________

Strongly disagree: 1 to 2 agree: 3 strongly agree: 4 to 5 don’t know

1 Change in relation with others

2 Roommate conflict
3 Work with people you don’t know
4 Fight with boyfriend/ Girlfriend
5 New boyfriend/ girlfriend
6 Family problem
7 Frustration due to misunderstandings
8 Change in sleeping habits
9 Change in eating habits
1 Change in sexual habits
0
1 Financial difficulties
1
1 Combining job with studies
2
1 Change in using alcohol
3
1 Health problems
4
1 Pressure
5
1 Lack of social contacts
6
1 New responsibilities
7
1 Increased class workload
8
1 Lower grade
9
2 Many hours of studies
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0
2 Language difficulties
1
2 Lack of university support
2
2 Examinations
3
2 Many essays
4
2 Staying late writing paper
5
2 Missing some lecturers
6
2 Lack of vacations/ Breaks
7
2 Computer problems
8
2 Bad living conditions
9
3 Quit job
0
3 Divorce between parents
1
3 Placed in unfamiliar situations
2
3 Moving to a new city
3

APPENDIX B (Coping strategies)

1 STRONGLY DISAGREE 2 DISAGREE 3 NOT SURE 4 AGREE 5 STRONGLY AGREE

1 I imagine things that please me

2 I guess people I love to have fun with
3 I think back to pleasant past experiences
4 I do things that gratify me like watching television or listening to music
5 I try to think of something pleasant
6 I try to carry on as if nothing happened
7 I pay no attention to pain
8 I tell myself that pain shouldn't interfere with what I do
9 Even if I feel pain I try to carry on
1 I don't think about pain
0
1 I ignore the pain
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1
1 I pretend the pain doesn't exist
2
1 I guess pain is foreign to my body
3
1 I pretend the pain doesn't belong to me
4
1 I try to withdraw from the pain, as if it belongs to someone else
5
1 I try to think that the pain does not belong to my body but that it is something
6 foreign
1 I have the feeling that I can no longer bear the pain
7
1 I feel like I can't go on
8
1 I worry about when the pain will end
9
2 I have a feeling that living is not worth it
0
2 The pain is terrible and I feel like it is overwhelming me
1
2 The pain is terrible and I have a feeling it will never get better
2
2 I pray to God the pain doesn't last long
3
2 I plead for the pain to end
4
2 I trust in faith in God
5
2 I tell myself that I can overcome the pain
6
2 I tell myself to have courage and carry on despite the pain
7
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