Psychological Distress and Coping amongst Higher Education Students: A Mixed Method Enquiry

Abstract

BackgroundPsychological distress among higher education students is of global concern. Students on programmes with practicum components such as nursing and teacher education are exposed to additional stressors which may further increase their risk for psychological distress. The ways in which these students cope with distress has potential consequences for their health and academic performance. An in-depth understanding of how nursing/midwifery and teacher education students experience psychological distress and coping is necessary to enable higher education providers to adequately support these students.MethodsThis mixed method study was employed to establish self-reported psychological distress (General Health Questionnaire), coping processes (Ways of Coping Questionnaire) and lifestyle behaviour (Lifestyle Behaviour Questionnaire) of a total sample (n = 1557) of undergraduate nursing/midwifery and teacher education students in one university in Ireland. Individual interviews (n = 59) provided an in-depth understanding of students experiences of psychological distress and coping.ResultsA significant percentage (41.9%) of respondents was psychologically distressed. The factors which contributed to their distress, included study, financial, living and social pressures. Students used varied coping strategies including seeking social support, problem solving and escape avoidance. The positive relationship between elevated psychological distress and escape avoidance behaviours including substance use (alcohol, tobacco and cannabis) and unhealthy diet is of particular concern. Statistically significant relationships were identified between “escape-avoidance” and gender, age, marital status, place of residence, programme/year of study and lifestyle behaviours such as diet, substance use and physical inactivity.ConclusionThe paper adds to existing research by illuminating the psychological distress experienced by undergraduate nursing/midwifery and teacher education students. It also identifies their distress, maladaptive coping and the relationship to their lifestyle behaviours. The findings can inform strategies to minimise student distress and maladaptive coping during college and in future professional years.

Under the Radar: The Mental Health of Australian University Students

“…Academic pressures and performance expectations are significant issues facing students (Deasy, Coughlan, Pironom, Jourdan, & Mannix-McNamara, 2014;Kruisselbrink Flatt, 2013). Many students are cognisant of the 'rising bar' for qualifications in Australia (VicHealth & CSRISO, 2015) and are extending study into post-graduate qualifications, while enhancing their resume, and competitive edge, through a range of extracurricular activities.…”

Challenging Performativity in Higher Education: Promoting a Healthier Learning Culture

“…The adverse consequences of increasing competitiveness and of greater demands and expectations on the health and well-being of academic staf [60,61] raise queries with regard to their potential as role models for health. Indeed, we argue that conversely the high expectations of overworking and high tolerance of the stressed environment are actually sowing the seeds of workplace stress and burnout in the initial education experience of higher education students [62]. Burnout has been cited as having some genesis in the undergraduate education experience [63,64], therefore programmes known to be stressful (especially those with vocational preparation components such as nursing and teaching) must incorporate efective coping skills to equip students with efective coping skills for use in their future careers to prevent engendering and sustaining cycles of distress and poor coping.…”

“…It is perhaps not unrelated then, that these professions feature as among the most vulnerable to burnout in the future. Our recently published research [52,62,81] that listened to students voice their experiences resulted in some data that were quite stark. For example, one student explains: [68 p. 1328] Another student also discussed a similar experience with clearly adverse impact upon learning:…”

The Relationship of Anxiety, School Burnout and Well-Being in High School Students

“…Furthermore, because of their sense of inadequacy they do not feel valued by teachers and frequently exhibit maladjusted behaviors at school with negative consequences for overall class atmosphere. Student burnout is a psychological syndrome caused by long-term exposure to school-related stress events and the pressure to achieve [10,11].…”