Benefits of a Stress Management Intervention Among College Students

Abstract:

Stress is a constant struggle for college aged students and can influence their academic performance and well-being. The current study examined the potential benefits a stress management intervention at Hilbert College might have for students in psychology courses. Hilbert College does not currently have any stress management resources for students. This study aimed to illustrate the positive benefits stress management has for students and emphasizes the importance of future research conducted campus wide. The intervention teaches students stress management techniques to reduce stress among college students. Previous research has shown that college students benefit from stress management tools such as, time management skills, mindfulness-based stress reduction, and reduced phone usage. Students who were enrolled in psychology courses at Hilbert College completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) to measure their stress levels before and then again two weeks after participating in an information presentation. One group received a presentation on stress management techniques, and the second group received information regarding nutritional facts. The nutrition group was designed to have no influence on stress levels. It was hypothesized that students who were a part of the stress management group would score lower on the second PSS measure than the students in the nutrition group. Future studies should monitor participants over a longer period of time to assess the full effectiveness of each technique provided. Future studies should also include a wider variety of participants among the campus, including faculty and staff members.