STRESSORS AND COPING MEASURES AMONG UNDERGRADUATE NURSING STUDENTS IN WESTERN NIGERIA

Abstract

Nursing students are frequently exposed to various stressors throughout their training; the resultant stress affects their personal, professional, and academic achievements and well-being directly or indirectly. This study aimed to identify the causes/sources of stress, the levels of stress, coping measures, and possible suggestions for reducing stress and its effects among nursing students. A descriptive cross-sectional design was used to assess stress and coping variables among undergraduate nursing students at a federal university in Western Nigeria. This study recruited 151 full-time undergraduate nursing students in their first to fifth study years using a simple random sampling technique. Data were collected using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and self-structured questions. The results were summarized using descriptive statistics of frequency, percentages, and mean ± SD. Academic, personal, financial, and relationship-related stressors were found to be the most common sources of stress. Most of nursing students experienced either low (47.7%) or severe (44.3%) stress levels and coped with it through positive thinking, optimism, sleep, and relaxation. Respondents suggested that more emphasis be placed on health promotion programs, reducing the number of exams in a week, and teaching students how to develop their social, coping, and time management skills.