Navigating the Transition to Postsecondary Studies: Exploring the Relationships Between Perceived Stress, Coping Styles and Academic Self-Efficacy

dc.contributor.advisorSchroeder, Meadow
dc.contributor.authorMatyjanka, Ocean
dc.contributor.committeememberClimie, Emma
dc.contributor.committeememberJacobsen, Michele
dc.date2021-11
dc.date.accessioned2021-10-05T20:23:24Z
dc.date.available2021-10-05T20:23:24Z
dc.date.issued2021-09
dc.description.abstractThe transition to postsecondary studies is a time of newfound independence and responsibility for students. This period of self-discovery and personal growth can also be challenging; some students experience increased stress due to financial constraints, forming new social relationships, moving away from home and increased pressure to perform well academically. Because recent studies have found that postsecondary students are experiencing heightened levels of stress, the aim of the current study was to identify interpersonal factors that could attenuate student stress during the transition to postsecondary studies. It investigated the relationships between perceived stress, coping styles and academic self-efficacy. Additionally, gender differences were explored across the study variables. A sample of 324 students in their first year of university completed measures of perceived stress, coping, and academic self-efficacy. A multiple regression found that coping styles (task-, emotion-, and avoidance-oriented coping) and academic self-efficacy were significant predictors of first-year postsecondary students perceived stress, accounting for 47% of the variance in the model. Specifically, students high in academic self-efficacy, who utilized task- or avoidance-oriented coping experienced decreased stress. Conversely, students who utilized emotion-oriented coping experienced increased stress. Although, there were gender differences in students self-reporting across the measures, these differences were not statistically significant. As a result, gender did not influence the relationships between students’ perceived stress, coping styles and academic self-efficacy. Taken altogether, these findings suggest that building academic self-efficacy is an important resource for students as it leads to decreased perceived stress, and that both task- and avoidance-oriented coping can be effective coping styles in certain situations for managing stress.en_US
dc.identifier.citationMatyjanka, O. (2021). Navigating the transition to postsecondary studies: exploring the relationships between perceived stress, coping styles and academic self-efficacy (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.en_US
dc.identifier.doihttp://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/39339
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/1880/114032
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.publisher.facultyWerklund School of Educationen_US
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Calgaryen
dc.rightsUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.en_US
dc.subjectTransition, Postsecondary, Students, Perceived Stress, Coping Style, Academic Self-Efficacyen_US
dc.subjectTransitionen_US
dc.subjectPostsecondaryen_US
dc.subjectStudentsen_US
dc.subjectPerceived Stressen_US
dc.subjectCoping Styleen_US
dc.subjectAcademic Self-Efficacyen_US
dc.subject.classificationEducational Psychologyen_US
dc.titleNavigating the Transition to Postsecondary Studies: Exploring the Relationships Between Perceived Stress, Coping Styles and Academic Self-Efficacyen_US
dc.typemaster thesisen_US
thesis.degree.disciplineEducation Graduate Program – Educational Psychologyen_US
thesis.degree.grantorUniversity of Calgaryen_US
thesis.degree.nameMaster of Science (MSc)en_US
ucalgary.item.requestcopytrueen_US
Files
Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Name:
ucalgary_2021_matyjanka_ocean.pdf
Size:
626.86 KB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
license.txt
Size:
2.62 KB
Format:
Item-specific license agreed upon to submission
Description: