Abstract
BackgroundFor many nursing students, clinical training represents a stressful experience. The levels of stress and anxiety may vary during students’ educational training, depending on their ability to adopt behavioral strategies for coping with stress, and other factors. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between anxiety, perceived stress, and the coping strategies used by nursing students during their clinical training.MethodsA cross-sectional correlational descriptive study. The sample consisted of 190 nursing students enrolled in the Nursing Faculty of Ciudad Real University in Spain. Participants provided data on background characteristics and completed the following instruments: the Perceived Stress Scale; the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and the Coping Behavior Inventory. Relationships between scores were examined using Spearman’s rho.ResultsThe mean age of participants was 20.71 ± 3.89 years (range 18–46 years). Approximately half of the students (47.92%) indicated a moderate level of stress with a mean Perceived Stress Scale score of 22.78 (±8.54). Senior nursing students perceived higher levels of stress than novice students. The results showed a significant correlation for perceived stress and state anxiety (r = 0.463, p < .000) and also for trait anxiety (r = 0.718, p < .000). There was also a significant relationship between the total amount of perceived stress and the following domains of the coping behavior inventory: problem solving (r = −.452, p < .01), self-criticism (r = .408 p < .01), wishful thinking (r = .459, p < .01), social support(r = −.220, p < .01), cognitive restructuring (r = −.375, p < .01), and social withdrawal (r = .388, p < .01). In the current study, the coping strategy most frequently used by students was problem-solving, followed by social support and cognitive restructuring.ConclusionsNursing students in our study presented a moderate level of stress, in addition there was a significant correlation with anxiety. Nursing teachers and clinical preceptors/mentors should be encouraged to develop programs to help prepare nursing students to cope with the challenges they are about to face during their clinical placements.
Highlights
For many nursing students, clinical training represents a stressful experience
This study was conducted to assess nursing students’ perceived stress levels and their association with anxiety, as well as the coping behaviors used to reduce the effect of stress during clinical training
47.92% of the students experienced a moderate level of perceived stress and only 25% perceived a high degree of stress
Summary
The levels of stress and anxiety may vary during students’ educational training, depending on their ability to adopt behavioral strategies for coping with stress, and other factors. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between anxiety, perceived stress, and the coping strategies used by nursing students during their clinical training. Research on stress levels among health professionals is an issue of current interest that merits concern [1]. This is due to the many causes of intrinsic stress referred by healthcare professionals, and because it is worth considering the negative and chronic effects of stress over time [2]. The first experience in clinical practice includes stressors such as fear of making mistakes, having to handle emergency situations, irregularities in clinical practice and visiting specialized units [6]
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