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1 – 10 of over 47000Usama ALAlami, Mahaba Salem Saleh Mohammed Al-Saleh and Tofi Rahal
Joshua Oluwasuji Dada, Solomon Olusola Babatunde and Racheal Oluwatoyin Adeleye
Stress has become an important topic in the academic environment. However, studies on academic stress among built environment students have received little attention. The purpose…
Abstract
Purpose
Stress has become an important topic in the academic environment. However, studies on academic stress among built environment students have received little attention. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to assess the causes of academic stress, and its coping strategies among built environment undergraduate students in public higher education institution (HEI) in Nigeria.
Design/methodology/approach
An extensive literature review was conducted to identify the causes of academic stress and its coping strategies among the students in HEIs, using quantity surveying students as a case. Primary data were elicited through questionnaire survey administered on 189 quantity surveying students in Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria. A total of 169 copies of the questionnaire were returned and suitable for analysis. The data obtained were analyzed using the mean score and t-test.
Findings
The study identified 27 causes of students’ academic stress, and the analysis of the total ranking revealed that 8 out of 27 causes of academic stress were considered important. The results of t-test indicated that except for 5 out of 27 identified causes of student academic stress, there is no statistically significant difference in the perceptions of male and female students. The study further identified 30 coping strategies employed by students in dealing with academic stress, out of which six identified coping strategies were considered important. In addition, the results of t-test revealed that except for 11 out of 30 identified coping strategies, there is no statistically significant difference in the perceptions of male and female students surveyed.
Practical implications
The identification of the important causes of academic stress and its coping strategies among the students in the public higher education will be useful for the university management to formulate policies toward providing a well-balanced academic environment that is conducive to better learning. In addition, policy recommendations are proposed.
Originality/value
The findings will help the academic staff and university management to design and implement policies toward refining the teaching procedures in higher education. Also, this study would be of great value to academic staff and university administrators to develop a framework for incorporating stress coping strategies in the higher education curriculum. This study is important as not many empirical studies relating to academic stress and its coping strategies have been conducted in the built environment disciplines.
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Anju, Amandeep, B.K. Punia, Vandana Punia and Naval Garg
The study focuses on academic stress among the students due to insufficient efforts and intrapersonal conflicts amid the COVID-19 situation. The purpose of this study is to…
Abstract
Purpose
The study focuses on academic stress among the students due to insufficient efforts and intrapersonal conflicts amid the COVID-19 situation. The purpose of this study is to measure the mediating role of academic stress between life dissatisfaction and adequate steps and intrapersonal conflicts.
Design/methodology/approach
The researcher had surveyed 729 students from the two states, including Haryana and Punjab and 716 responses were used for analysis. These respondents were approached in April–May 2020 to explore the impact of COVID-19. The questionnaire was prepared with the help of Google form, including 29 questions. Confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling (SEM) were used to validate the research model and for testing the hypothesis.
Findings
The findings indicate that intra-personal conflict and insufficient efforts have a significant positive relation with academic stress. Also, intrapersonal conflict and insufficient efforts have a significant positive relation with life dissatisfaction. It has been reported that academic stress mediates the relationship between life dissatisfaction and intra-personal conflict. The results also reveal that academic stress is positively and significantly associated with life dissatisfaction.
Originality/value
This is one of the few studies that explored the mediating role of academic stress between life dissatisfaction and insufficient efforts and intrapersonal conflicts.
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Md. Kamrul Hossain, Tajmary Mahfuz, Subhenur Latif and Mohamed Emran Hossain
To identify the financial stress and associate factors of tertiary level student.
Abstract
Purpose
To identify the financial stress and associate factors of tertiary level student.
Design/methodology/approach
To identify the financial stress and associate factors, a structured questionnaire was developed to collect data from 571 students of different universities of Bangladesh through Google form. Chi square and Cramer's V were applied to find the associated factors with financial stress of students, whereas ordinal regression was performed to evaluate the influence of the associated factors on financial stress.
Findings
Gender, living status, borrowing loan factors have positive association with financial stress. Tuition fee dues have significant positive association with financial stress. A student who has tuition fee dues feels 1.48 times more stress compared to student who does not have dues. Females were found less likely to be financially stressed (AOR = 1.536) than male students. Students who borrowed loans were more likely to have financial stress than non-borrowed loan groups of students.
Practical implications
Results indicate that financial stress has a strong impact on participation in different academic and personal activities of a student. Therefore, parents, university administration and student counselor should consider the factor to assess stress of a student.
Originality/value
This study identified factors responsible for financial stress of Bangladeshi students of tertiary level.
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On‐line collaboration is becoming increasingly common in education and in organisations. It was believed that this could in itself cause stress for collaborators. An analysis of…
Abstract
On‐line collaboration is becoming increasingly common in education and in organisations. It was believed that this could in itself cause stress for collaborators. An analysis of on‐line learning diaries, phone interviews and questionnaires indicated that on‐line collaboration could cause stress, and this stress was linked to the dependency of the collaborators on each other, and the level of their mutual trust. Stress could be designed out of on‐line collaborative exercises through management of the on‐line working processes. The trend in both education and management towards increased on‐line working and collaboration indicates that further research needs to be carried out into finding how to reduce stress from this cause.
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Sibnath Deb, Esben Strodl and Jiandong Sun
The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of academic stress and exam anxiety among private secondary school students in India as well as the associations with…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of academic stress and exam anxiety among private secondary school students in India as well as the associations with socio-economic and study-related factors.
Design/methodology/approach
Participants were 400 adolescent students (52 percent male) from five private secondary schools in Kolkata who were studying in grades 10 and 12. Participants were selected using a multi-stage sampling technique and were assessed using a study-specific questionnaire.
Findings
Findings revealed that 35 and 37 percent reported high or very high levels of academic stress and exam anxiety respectively. All students reported high levels of academic stress, but those who had lower grades reported higher levels of stress than those with higher grades. Students who engaged in extra-curricula activities were more likely to report exam anxiety than those who did not engage in extra-curricula activities.
Practical implications
Private high school students in India report high levels of academic stress and exam anxiety. As such there is a need to develop effective interventions to help these students better manage their stress and anxiety.
Originality/value
This is the first study the authors are aware of that explores the academic stress levels of private secondary school students in India. The study identifies factors that may be associated with the experience of high levels of stress that need to be explored further in future research.
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Aareni Uruthirapathy and Lorraine Dyke
General causality orientation is a mini-theory within the self-determination theory (STD). The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of general causality orientations…
Abstract
Purpose
General causality orientation is a mini-theory within the self-determination theory (STD). The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of general causality orientations (autonomous, controlled, and impersonal) on perceived stress and self-esteem among students in a women-only college.
Design/methodology/approach
Data were collected through a questionnaire administered to students (n = 132) of a small women-only university in Roanoke, Virginia, USA. The survey included questions on the three general causality orientations, perceived stress, and self-esteem; the survey also included questions on student satisfaction, financial resources, and academic performance, used as control variables in the study.
Findings
Autonomous orientation was not significantly related to self-esteem or perceived stress. Controlled orientation negatively influences self-depreciation. Finally, impersonal orientation positively influenced self-depreciation and negatively affected self-confidence.
Practical implications
Faculty and administrators in women-only universities should be encouraged to implement programs that strengthen the sense of optimism among female students. Student support services that emphasize enhancing autonomous orientation could be even more helpful by offering interventions that help students overcome their impersonal orientation.
Originality/value
While previous studies have concentrated on autonomous orientation, this study provides recommendations for overcoming impersonal orientation among female undergraduate students in women-only colleges to enhance self-esteem and reduce stress.
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Luqman Oyekunle Oyewobi, Gbolahan Bolarin, Naomi Temitope Oladosu and Richard Ajayi Jimoh
This study examined the causes of academic stress amongst undergraduate students in the Department of Quantity Surveying to ascertain whether stress has an influence on their…
Abstract
Purpose
This study examined the causes of academic stress amongst undergraduate students in the Department of Quantity Surveying to ascertain whether stress has an influence on their academic performance.
Design/methodology/approach
This research explores the relationships between these constructs: academic stress, non-academic stress, coping strategies and academic performance, using a survey questionnaire to collect data from 190 undergraduate students in the Quantity Survey department. Descriptive statistics have been used to analyse the data and a path analytical approach has been adopted to evaluate the relationship between the constructs discussed in the paper.
Findings
Significant linear associations have been established between all the proposed paths and the outcome factor (p < 0.00). Coping strategies were an important mediator (p = 0.000), as they explained 32.9% of the association between academic stress and non-academic stress. However, the findings have shown that the stress faced by students is an optimal degree of stress that improves learning capabilities.
Practical implications
Explanation and clarification of the effects of academic and non-academic stress and coping mechanisms on the academic performance of university undergraduate students could help to reduce the risk of suicide amongst the teeming youths. It will also afford the university administration the opportunity to engender stress-free environment that is conducive for learning through the formulation of appropriate policies that promote “balanced learning” for the students. The outcome of this study may provide a launch pad for researchers who are interested in knowing how the possible causes of stress may impact on the health of university students.
Originality/value
The findings will be of great importance to the academic advisers and university administration in developing a flexible academic calendar and adopt policies that will eliminate academic stress and promote strategies to cope with non-academic stress. The study is the first attempt to examine academic stress, non-academic stress, coping strategies and academic performance in a single research in the Nigerian context due to limited literature found. This study has pedagogical implications to education practice by offering tertiary institutions the opportunity to appraise and device a means of managing students' stress by identifying their needs and increase students' coping skills based on prevailing modalities that give students' opportunities to strengthen the strategies of coping.
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Sumayah AlJhani, Deemah Alateeq, Afnan Alwabili and Ahmad Alamro
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has multiple consequences, including social distancing and the shift of education from in-person to online learning, which may have a…
Abstract
Purpose
The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has multiple consequences, including social distancing and the shift of education from in-person to online learning, which may have a psychological impact on students, especially those in medical colleges. This study aims to explore the effect of online learning on medical students’ mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic across Saudi Arabia.
Design/methodology/approach
A descriptive, nationwide, cross-sectional survey was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic, after students in medical colleges moved to online learning. It included socio-demographic characteristics, online learning-related questions, perceived stress scale and generalized anxiety disorder-7.
Findings
The participants represented various academic levels within the basic science phase (44.9%) and clinical phase (55.1%) and various regions, including the central (55.3%), western (18.8%), northern (13.4%), southern (8.8%) and eastern (3.7%) regions. Moderate to high perceived stress was reported by 94.4% of students. Two-thirds of the students reported generalized anxiety symptoms, ranging from moderate to severe in 47% of them. A significant positive correlation was found between stress and anxiety. Women, age > 25, first-year students, students facing oral and objective structured clinical examinations, students with excellent and pass grades and those facing difficulties had higher levels of stress and anxiety. In addition, being non-Saudi, married or having a history of psychiatric illness was associated with higher levels of anxiety.
Originality/value
Stress and anxiety were highly expressed among participants using online learning. In addition to studying the efficacy of online learning, it is important to focus on its effect on medical students’ mental health, due to the highly competitive and demanding environment of medical colleges.
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Gülden Gümüşburun Ayalp and Tülay Çivici
Presently, there are two main classification of architectural courses in the curriculum: lecture courses and design studios. Owing to the duality between design studios and…
Abstract
Purpose
Presently, there are two main classification of architectural courses in the curriculum: lecture courses and design studios. Owing to the duality between design studios and lecture courses, architectural education includes a highly stressful learning environment. In addition to this dualism, architecture students also cope with their lives in universities and different types of stressors similar to all university students. Therefore, this study aims to determine the critical stress factors that affect architecture students studying in Turkey.
Design/methodology/approach
The reasons for a stressful architecture learning environment were examined using a questionnaire distributed among architecture students, and face-to-face surveys were conducted. The obtained data were analysed statistically using SPSS 22 and LISREL 8.7 software. Correlation analysis, exploratory and confirmatory analysis and structural equation modelling of the relationships between the stressors and stress factors and the impacts (perceived stress) were performed, and a structural model was developed.
Findings
A total of 11 critical factors affecting architecture students’ stress levels were determined; academic inadequacy, unusual assessments and evaluation techniques of courses and intensive academic schedule were the most critical stressors. Based on these factors, necessary solutions and recommendations were offered, which are expected to decrease architecture students’ stress levels and encourage other similar studies.
Originality/value
There is limited research that provides insights into the factors that cause stress to architecture students; only literature reviews and surveys are currently available. Unlike these, this study presents a structural equation model for critical stress factors via a confirmatory factor analysis.
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