Exploring College-Aged Student Anxiety: Aggravating Factors and Coping Strategies

Julie E. Volkman; Bianca M. Wolf; Chris R. Morse; Ella Browning; Andrew High; Heather Pond  Lacey; Joseph Trunzo; Wendy Samter

doi:10.29333/ajqr/15163

Julie E. Volkman ¹ ^* , Bianca M. Wolf ² ^* , Chris R. Morse ³, Ella Browning ⁴, Andrew High ⁵, Heather Pond Lacey ³, Joseph Trunzo ³, Wendy Samter ³

More Detail

AM J QUALITATIVE RES, Volume 8, Issue 4, pp. 1-23

https://doi.org/10.29333/ajqr/15163

OPEN ACCESS 1760 Views 883 Downloads

Download Full Text (PDF)

Abstract

Undergraduate college-aged students are increasingly experiencing anxiety. Yet, many struggle to cope effectively, resulting in poor school performance and compromised health and well-being. Our goal was to identify common anxiety-inducing and aggravating stressors, as well as preferred adaptive coping strategies, in this exploratory study to inform anxiety intervention development. A total of 19 undergraduate students (17 female and 2 male) were recruited. Students previously diagnosed or treated for anxiety by a clinician participated in a two-week, daily diary entry study. A total of 219 diary entries were transcribed and thematically analyzed for student reports of awareness variables and associated coping responses. Data were compared and triangulated. Framed by cognitive-behavioral approaches to anxiety and the transactional theory of stress and coping, we identified five primary categories of anxiety-inducing or aggravating stressors: academic time management and performance, communication anxiety, competing life stressors, others’ presence and problems, and generalized uncertainty. In addition, we found that students primarily utilized adaptive coping strategies, employing a mix of intrapersonal (e.g., alone time, breaks, hobbies/music, and staying productive) and interpersonal techniques (e.g., hanging out with and talking with friends and family). Findings highlight common anxiety stressors and demonstrate preferred and efficacious coping strategies employed by students, providing valuable insight into best practices for student well-being interventions beyond a clinical setting to manage anxiety and improve student well-being.

Keywords: Anxiety, undergraduate college-age students, coping

References

Abelson, S., Ketchen Lipson, S., & Eisenberg, D. (2023, June 2). What works for improving mental health in higher education? American Council on Education. https://www.acenet.edu/Documents/What-Works-Mental-Health.pdf
Adams, S. H., Schaub, J. P., Nagata, J. M., Park, M. J., Brindis, C. D., & Irwin, Jr., C. E. (2022). Young adult anxiety or depressive symptoms and mental health service utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Adolescent Health, 70(6), 985–988. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2022.02.023
Allen, M., & Bourhis, J. (1996). The relationship of communication apprehension to communication behavior: A meta‐analysis. Communication Quarterly, 44(2), 214–226. https://doi.org/10.1080/01463379609370011
American Psychological Association. (2022, February). What’s the difference between stress and anxiety? https://www.apa.org/topics/stress/anxiety-difference#:~:text=People%20under%20stress%20experience%20mental,the%20absence%20of%20a%20stressor
American Psychological Association. (2022, August). Anxiety. https://www.apa.org/topics/anxiety#:~:text=Anxiety%20is%20an%20emotion%20characterized,certain%20situations%20out%20of%20worry
Anxiety & Depression Association of America. (2022, October 25). Generalized anxiety disorder. https://adaa.org/understanding-anxiety/generalized-anxiety-disordergad#:~:text=Generalized%20Anxiety%20Disorder%20(GAD)%20is,difficult%20to%20control%20their%20worry
Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood: A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. American Psychologist, 55(5), 469–480. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.5.469
Ayyad, A. A., Maestri, T. J., Harris, S., Casanova, N., & Ibrahim, H. (2023). Assessing underutilization of mental health resources at a historically black college and university (HBCU). Research Square. https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-3760662/v1
Baeza Bickel, N. (February 25, 2021). Anxiety, depression reached record levels among college students last fall. https://news.umich.edu/anxiety-depression-reached-record-levels-among-college-students-last-fall/
Bamber, M. D., & Kraenzle Schneider, J. (2016). Mindfulness-based meditation to decrease stress and anxiety in college students: A narrative synthesis of the research. Educational Research Review, 18, 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.edurev.2015.12.004
Barlow, D. H., Allen, L. B., & Basden, S. L. (2007). Psychological treatments for panic disorders, phobias, and generalized anxiety disorder. In P. E. Nathan & J. M. Gorman (Eds.), A guide to treatments that work (3rd ed., pp. 351–394). Oxford University Press.
Berger, C. R., & Calabrese, R. J. (1975). Some explorations in initial interaction and beyond: Toward a developmental theory of interpersonal communication. Human Communication Research, 1(2), 99–112. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2958.1975.tb00258.x
Bledsoe, S., Baskin, J. J., & Berry, F. (2018). Fear not! How students cope with the fears and anxieties of college life. College Teaching, 66(3), 158–165. https://doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2018.1472064
Carminati, L. (2018). Generalizability in qualitative research: A tale of two traditions. Qualitative, 28(13), 2094–2101. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732318788379
Charmaz, K. (2006). Constructing grounded theory: A practical guide through qualitative analysis. SAGE Publications.
Corbin, J. M., & Strauss, A. L. (2014). Basics of qualitative research: Techniques and procedures for developing grounded theory (4th ed.). SAGE Publications.
Creswell, J., & Plano Clark, V. (2007). Designing and conducting mixed methods research. SAGE Publications.
Fisher, C. L., Kastrinos, A., Piemonte, N., Canzona, M. R., Wolf, B., & Pipe, T. (2022). Coping with breast cancer together: Challenging topics for mothers and their adolescent-young adult (AYA) daughters. Journal of Psychosocial Oncology, 40(6), 756–769. https://doi.org/10.1080/07347332.2021.2005734
Folkman, S. (1984). Personal control and stress and coping processes: A theoretical analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 46(4), 839–852. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.46.4.839
Folkman, S. (2011). Stress, health, and coping: An overview. In S. Folkman (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of stress, health, and coping (pp. 3–11). Oxford University Press.
Glaser, B. G. (1965). The constant comparative method of qualitative analysis. Social Problems, 12(4), 436–445. https://doi.org/10.2307/798843
Glaser, B., & Strauss, A. (2017). Discovery of grounded theory: Strategies for qualitative research. Routledge.
Ghaffari, M., Morowatisharifabad, M. A., Jadgal, M. S., Mehrabi, Y., & Alizadeh, S. (2021). The effectiveness of intervention based on the transactional model on improving coping efforts and stress moderators in hemodialysis patients in Tehran: A randomized controlled trial. BMC Nephrology, 22(1), 377–388. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12882-021-02592-8
Groleau, D., Young, A., & Kirmayer, L. J. (2006). The McGill Illness Narrative Interview (MINI): An interview schedule to elicit meanings and modes of reasoning related to illness experience. Transcultural Psychiatry, 43(4), 671–691. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363461506070796
Gudykunst, W. B. (2005). An anxiety/uncertainty management (AUM) theory of effective communication. In W. B. Gudykunst (Ed.), Theorizing about intercultural communication (p. 281–322). SAGE Publications. Healthy Minds Study (2021). The Health Minds Study 2021 Winter/Spring Data Report. https://healthymindsnetwork.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/HMS_national_winter_2021.pdf
Hubbard, K., Reohr, P., Tolcher, L., & Downs, A. (2018). Stress, mental health symptoms, and help-seeking in college students. Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research, 23(4), 293–305. https://doi.org/10.24839/2325-7342.JN23.4.293
Jones, P. J., Park, S. Y. & Lefevor, G. T. (2018), Contemporary college student anxiety: The role of academic distress, financial stress, and support. Journal of College Counseling, 21, 252-264. https://doi.org/10.1002/jocc.12107
Kenten, C. (2010). Narrating oneself: Reflections on the use of solicited diaries with diary interviews. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung / Forum: Qualitative Social Research, 11(2). https://doi.org/10.17169/fqs-11.2.1314
Klonoff-Cohen, H. (2022). College students’ opinions about coping strategies for mental health problems, suicide ideation, and self-harm during COVID-19. Frontiers in Psychology, 6(13), Article 918891. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.918891
Kumari, A., & Jain, J. (2014) Examination stress and anxiety: A study of college students. Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies, 4(1).
Lazarus, R. S. (1966). Psychological stress and the coping process. McGraw-Hill.
Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal and coping. Springer.
Lee, J., Jeong, H. J., & Kim, S. (2021). Stress, anxiety, and depression among undergraduate students during the COVID-19 pandemic and their use of mental health services. Innovative Higher Education, 46(5), 519–538. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10755-021-09552-y
Lincoln, L., Adamson, B. J., & Covic, T. (2004) Teaching time and organizational management skills to first year health science students: does training make a difference? Journal of Further and Higher Education, 28(3), 261–276. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877042000241742
Mahmoud, J. S., Staten, R. T., Lennie, T. A., & Hall, L. A. (2015). The relationships of coping, negative thinking, life satisfaction, social support, and selected demographics with anxiety of young adult college students. Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing, 28(2), 97–108. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcap.12109
Marsh, C., & Wilcoxon, S. (2015). Underutilization of mental health services among college students: An examination of system-related barriers. Journal of College Student Psychotherapy, 29(3), 227–243. https://doi.org/10.1080/87568225.2015.1045783
Mayo Clinic (2023). Anxiety disorders. https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/anxiety/symptoms-causes/syc-20350961
McCarthy, C. (2019). Anxiety in teens: What’s going on? https://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditions/emotional-problems/Pages/Anxiety-Disorders.aspx
McCroskey, J. C. (1970). Measures of communication-bound anxiety. Speech Monographs, 37(4), 269–277. https://doi.org/10.1080/03637757009375677
Meridian Psychiatric Partners (2023). The most common causes of anxiety in college students. https://meridianpsychiatricpartners.com/the-most-common-causes-of-anxiety-in-college-students/
Morena, A. L., Gaias, L. M., & Wang, Y. (2024). Profiles of mental health help-seeking barriers in college students. Stigma and Health. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1037/sah0000517
Morse, J. M., Barrett, M., Mayan, M., Olson, K., & Spiers, J. (2002). Verification strategies for establishing reliability and validity in qualitative research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 1(2), 13–22. https://doi.org/10.1177/160940690200100202
Moritz, S., Jahns, A. K., Schröder, J., Berger, T., Lincoln, T. M., Klein, J. P., & Göritz, A. S. (2016). More adaptive versus less maladaptive coping: What is more predictive of symptom severity? Development of a new scale to investigate coping profiles across different psychopathological syndromes. Journal of Affective Disorders, 191, 300–307. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2015.11.027
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). (2022, April). Anxiety disorders. https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/anxiety-disorders#:~:text=There%20are%20several%20types%20of,and%20various%20phobia%2Drelated%20disorders
Pedrelli, P., Nyer, M., Yeung, A., Zulauf, C., & Wilens, T. (2015). College students: Mental health problems and treatment considerations. Academic Psychiatry: The Journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry, 39(5), 503–511. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-014-0205-9
Prince, A. G. (2021). Managing anxiety and uncertainty: applying anxiety/uncertainty management theory to university health professionals and students’ communication. Journal of Communication in Healthcare, 14(4), 293–302. https://doi.org/10.1080/17538068.2021.1913946
Regehr, C., Glancy, D., & Pitts, A. (2013). Interventions to reduce stress in university students: A review and meta-analysis. Journal of Affective Disorders, 148(1), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2012.11.026
Singh, S., Pandey, N. M., Datta, M., & Batra, B. (2021). Stress, internet use, substance use and coping among adolescents, young-adults and middle-age adults amid the ‘new normal’ pandemic era. Clinical Epidemiology and Global Health, 12, Article 100885. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cegh.2021.100885
Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L., Lushene, P. R., Vagg, P. R., & Jacobs, A. G. (1983). Manual for the state-trait anxiety inventory (Form Y). Consulting Psychologists Press.
Tan, G. X. D., Ci Soh, X., Hartanto, A., Goh, A. Y. H., & Majeed, N. M. (2023). Prevalence of anxiety in college and university students: An umbrella review. Journal of Affective Disorders, 14, Article 100658. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadr.2023.100658
Tracy, S. (2020). Qualitative research methods: Collecting evidence, crafting analysis, communication impact (2nd ed.). Wiley-Blackwell.
Vahratian A., Terlizzi E. P., Villarroel M.A., Zablotsky, B., & Blumberg, S. J. (2020, September 23). Mental health in the United States: New estimates from the National Center for Health Statistics. https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/events/nhis-mental-health-webinar-2020-508.pdf
Vilaplana-Pérez, A., Pérez-Vigil, A., Sidorchuk, A., Brander, G., Isomura, K., Hesselmark, E., Kuja-Halkola, R., Larsson, H., Mataix-Cols, D., & de la Cruz, L. F. (2021). Much more than just shyness: The impact of social anxiety disorder on educational performance across the lifespan. Psychological Medicine, 51(5), 861–869. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0033291719003908
Weissinger, G., Ho, C., Ruan-Iu, L., Van Fossen, C., & Diamond, G. (2022). Barriers to mental health services among college students screened in student health: A latent class analysis. Journal of American College Health. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2022.2104614
Wolf, B. M. and Fisher, C. L. (2023). Stress, appraisal, and coping theory. In The International Encyclopedia of Health Communication (eds E. Y. Ho, C. L. Bylund, J. C. M. van Weert, I. Basnyat, N. Bol and M. Dean). https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119678816.iehc0669
Wolters, C. A., & Brady, A. C. (2021). College students’ time management: A self-regulated learning perspective. Educational Psychology Review, 33, 1319–1351. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-020-09519-z
Worsley, J. D., Harrison, P., & Corcoran, R. (2021) Bridging the gap: Exploring the unique transition from home, school or college into university. Frontiers in Public Health, 17(9), Article 634285. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.634285
Zaboski, B. A., Joyce-Beaulieu, D., Kranzler, J. H., McNamara, J. P., Gayle, C., & MacInnes, J. (2019). Group exposure and response prevention for college students with social anxiety: A randomized clinical trial. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 75(9), 1489–1507. https://doi.org/10.1002/jclp.22792

Citation

Volkman, J. E., Wolf, B. M., Morse, C. R., Browning, E., High, A., Lacey, H. P., . . . Samter, W. (2024). Exploring College-Aged Student Anxiety: Aggravating Factors and Coping Strategies. American Journal of Qualitative Research, 8(4), 1-23. https://doi.org/10.29333/ajqr/15163

Volkman JE, Wolf BM, Morse CR, et al. Exploring College-Aged Student Anxiety: Aggravating Factors and Coping Strategies. AM J QUALITATIVE RES. 2024;8(4), 1-23. https://doi.org/10.29333/ajqr/15163

Volkman, Julie E., Bianca M. Wolf, Chris R. Morse, Ella Browning, Andrew High, Heather Pond Lacey, Joseph Trunzo, and Wendy Samter. "Exploring College-Aged Student Anxiety: Aggravating Factors and Coping Strategies". American Journal of Qualitative Research 2024 8 no. 4 (2024): 1-23. https://doi.org/10.29333/ajqr/15163

Volkman, Julie E. et al. "Exploring College-Aged Student Anxiety: Aggravating Factors and Coping Strategies". American Journal of Qualitative Research, vol. 8, no. 4, 2024, pp. 1-23. https://doi.org/10.29333/ajqr/15163

Volkman JE, Wolf BM, Morse CR, Browning E, High A, Lacey HP, et al. Exploring College-Aged Student Anxiety: Aggravating Factors and Coping Strategies. AM J QUALITATIVE RES. 2024;8(4):1-23. https://doi.org/10.29333/ajqr/15163