ISSN: 2226-6348
Open access
Students nowadays are always exposed to different kinds of stress that are related to academic, family, or relationship issues. Experiencing stress can have a negative impact on their mental health and personal well-being. It is important for students to know the coping strategies in order to prevent their stress levels from becoming more serious. This research was conducted to identify how university students cope with their stress. The present study employed a quantitative method by conducting an online survey that was completed by a total of 404 university students from a selected public university in Malaysia. The findings show that students use different types of coping strategies to manage their stress. Most of the students frequently used cognitive strategies, followed by behavioral and emotional ones. Three strategies were not used significantly differently by gender except for emotional coping which was used more often by female students. It is interesting to note that most of the male students tend to use significantly more behavioral strategies. Male students also were found to seek professional help significantly more than female students. This has implications for the policy maker in students’ welfare departments in higher education institutions, and educators to be aware of students’ psychological issues and students themselves in terms of their well-being. Apart from that, this study suggests a qualitative study should be conducted to gain in-depth information from the students on coping strategies.
Ahmad, M. S., Md Yusoff, M. M., & Razak, I. A. (2011). Stress and its relief among undergraduate dental students in Malaysia. Southeast Asian Journal of Tropical Medicine and Public Health, 42(4), 996-999.
Aisyah, C.R., Raishan, S.B., & Mohd Azhar, M.Y. (2021). Psychological Well-Being of Malaysian University Students during COVID-19 Pandemic: Do Religiosity and Religious Coping Matter?. Healthcare.
Babicka-Wirkus A, Wirkus L, Stasiak K, Koz?owski P (2021) University students’ strategies of coping with stress during the coronavirus pandemic: Data from Poland. PLoS ONE 16(7): e0255041. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0255041
Conley, C. S., Shapiro, J. B., Huguenel, B. M., & Kirsch, A. C. (2020). Navigating the College Years: Developmental Trajectories and Gender Differences in Psychological Functioning, Cognitive-Affective Strategies, and Social Well-Being. Emerging Adulthood, 8(2), 103–117. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167696818791603
Cr?ciun, B. (2013). Coping Strategies, Self-criticism and Gender Factor in Relation to Quality of Life, Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 78, 466-470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.04.332.
Dada, J.O., Babatunde, S.O., & Adeleye, R.O. (2018). Assessment of academic stress and coping strategies among built environment undergraduate students in Nigerian higher education. Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, 11(3).
Essel, G., & Owusu, P. (2017). Causes of students ’ stress , its effects on their academic success , and stress management by students. Journal of Musculoskeletal Pain, 2(2), 82. Retrieved from Theseus database.
Freire, C., Ferradás, M. M., Regueiro, B., Rodríguez, S., Valle, S., & Núñez José C. (2020). Coping strategies and self-efficacy in university students: A person-centered approach . Frontiers in Psychology , 11, https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00841
Ganesan, Y., Talwar, P., Fauzan, N., & Oon, Y. B. (2019). A Study on Stress Level and Coping Strategies among Undergraduate Students. Journal of Cognitive Sciences and Human Development, 3(2), 37–47. doi:10.33736/jcshd.787.2018
Gibbons, C. (2010). Stress, coping and burn-out in nursing students. International Journal of Nursing Studies, 47(10), 1299-1309.
Hasan, A.A., Tumah, H. (2019) The correlation between occupational stress, coping strategies, and the levels of psychological distress among nurses working in mental health hospital in Jordan. Perspect Psychiatry Care, 55(2):153–160. https://doi.org/10.1111/ppc.12292
Honglin, C., Yu-Cheung, W., Mao-Sheng, R., & Christie, G. (2009). Stress among Shanghai University Students: The Need for Social Work Support. Journal of Social Work, 9(3), 323-344. doi: 10.1177/1468017309334845
Hossain, M.M., Alam, M.A., & Masum, M.H. (2021). Prevalence of anxiety, depression, and stress among studentsofJahangirnagar University in Bangladesh. Health Science Reports.
Irshad, S., Saleem, S., & Mahmood, Z. (2015). Coping strategies of university students: A validity study. Pakistan Journal of Psychological Society, 12(1), pp. 8–13).
Ji, H., & Zhang, L. (2011). Research on college students’ stresses and coping strategies. Asian Social Science, 7(10), 30.
Krypel, M. N. & Henderson-King, D. (2010). Stress, coping styles, and optimism: Are they related to meaning of education in students’ lives? Social Psychology of Education, 13(3), 409-424. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-010-9132-0
Lawton, G. (2019). Why are students at university so stressed? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/education/2019/may/31/why-are-students-at-university-so-stressed
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. New York: Springer Publishing Company.
Maryam, S. (2017). Stres keluarga: Model dan pengukurannya. Psikoislamedia: Jurnal Psikologi, 1(2), 335-343
Misra, R., & Castillo, L. (2004). Academic Stress Among College Students: Comparison of American and International Students7% of doctoral degrees earned in the. International Journal of Stress Management, 11(2), 132-148. doi: 10.1037/1072-5245.11.2.132
Mohd Zaliridzal, Z., Nurul Izzati, M.R., Abdul Rashid, A. A. , Nurhafizah, M. S., Muhammed Fauzi, O., & Mohd Azhar, A.H. (2021). Coping Mechanism Towards Academic Stress Among Students: An Analysis from Islamic Perspective. Ulum Islamiyyah Journal, 33(1).
Nur Hamizah, H.R., Masoumeh, A., Seyed, A.M., & Atefeh, A. (2018). Academic Stress and Self-Regulation among University Students in Malaysia: Mediator Role of Mindfulness. Behavioral Sciences, 8(12).
Nur Syuhada, M.P., Norwaziah, M., & Hafawati, J. (2021). Coping Strategies for Four Factors of Stress Among UiTM Jasin Students. Journal of Computing Research and Innovation (JCRINN), 6(2).
Ribeiro, I.J.S., Pereira, R., Freire, I.V., de Oliveira, B. G., Casotti, C. A., & Boery, E. N. (2018). Stress and quality of life among university students: A systematic literature review. Health Professions Education, 4(2). 70-77. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hpe.2017.03.002.
Pillay, A. L., & Bundhoo, H. Y. (2011). Mauritian undergraduate university students’ sources of stress and support. South African Journal of Psychology, 41(4), 417-423.
Pozos-Radillo, B. E., Preciado-Serrano, M. L., Acosta-Fernández, M., Aguilera-Velasco, M. A., & Delgado-García, D. D. (2014). Academic stress as a predictor of chronic stress in university students. Psicología Educativa, 20(1). 47-52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pse.2014.05.006.
Sajid, M. B., Hamid, S., Sabih, F., & Sajid, A. (2017). Stress and coping mechanisms among college students. Journal of Pakistan Psychiatric Society, 14(3), 31-34. Retrieved from http://www.jpps.com.pk/article/15076364465919-Stress%20and%20Coping%20Mechanisms%20Among%20College%20Students.pdf
Yoo, C. (2019). Stress coping and mental health among adolescents: applying a multi-dimensional stress coping model, Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, 99(C), 43-53.
Yusoff, M. S. B. (2010). Stress, stressors & coping strategies among secondary school students in a Malaysian government secondary school: Initial findings. ASEAN Journal of Psychiatry, 11(2).
Yusoff, M. S. B., Rahim, A. F. A., & Yaacob, M. J. (2010). Prevalence and sources of stress among Universiti Sains Malaysia medical students. The Malaysian Journal of Medical Sciences: MJMS, 17(1), 1-30
(Mustafa et al., 2023)
Mustafa, S. M. S., Hamzah, L. M., & Alias, N. F. (2023). Stress Coping Strategies among University Students in Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Progressive Education and Development, 12(3), 1362-1371.
Copyright: © 2023 The Author(s)
Published by HRMARS (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode