Perceived stress and coping strategies among undergraduate nursing students in the psychiatric practicum during the COVID‑19 pandemic: A cross‑sectional quantitative study

Department of Nursing, College of Nursing, Tzu Chi University, Hualien, Taiwan

 

Abstract

 

Objectives: This study aimed to explore perceived stress and coping strategies among undergraduate nursing students in the psychiatric practicum during the pandemic. Materials and Methods: A cross‑sectional quantitative design was employed in this study. Data were collected through self‑administered questionnaires consisting of demographic variables, the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and the Coping Behavior Inventory (CBI). Results: Of the 73 participants, 82.2% were women. The mean age was 21.25 ± 0.69 years. The overall mean score of PSS was 1.45 ± 0.48, and that of CBI was 1.93 ± 0.31. The major sources of perceived stress were taking care of patients (1.72 ± 0.54) and assignments and workload (1.72 ± 0.75). The major coping strategies to deal with stress were problem‑solving (2.66 ± 0.52) and staying optimistic (2.43 ± 0.73). Pearson’s correlation analyses revealed that participants who utilized the avoidance strategy (r = 0.416) reported high‑stress levels, whereas participants who utilized problem‑solving (r = −0.306) and staying optimistic (r = −0.527) reported low‑stress levels. Conclusion: The nursing students perceived moderate stress mainly from taking care of patients as well as assignments and workload. Problem‑solving and staying optimistic were the most frequently used coping strategies. Compared with findings from other studies, our data suggested that the impact of the COVID‑19 pandemic on perceived stress was not apparent possibly due to well‑established approaches and education for infection prevention and control in our hospitals and schools. Our findings may provide valuable information to maximize students’ learning opportunities.

Keywords: Coping, COVID‑19, Nursing, Stress, Students