Effect of Social Comparison Orientation and Stress Coping Styles on Job-Seeking Stress of University Students Preparing for Employment

Abstract

This study examined the effects of social comparison orientation and stress coping styles on job-seeking stress experienced by university students. The participants of this study were 324 junior and senior students (151 males and 173 females) from six universities located in Seoul who were preparing for employment. They were asked to respond to a written questionnaire to measure research variables for the Job-Seeking Stress Scale, the Social Comparison Orientation Scale, and the Ways of Coping Checklist. The data were analyzed by means of descriptive statistics and a hierarchical multiple regression. The major findings of this study were as follows. First, social comparison orientation had a positive effect on job-seeking stress of university students, revealing that students with a high level of social comparison orientation were more likely to experience job-seeking stress. Second, both emotion-alleviation coping style and wishful thinking coping style increased level of job-seeking stress. In addition, problem-focused coping style had a negative influence on job-seeking stress, whereas social support seeking coping style had no significant effect on it. The results suggested that it would be possible to reduce job-seeking stress of university students by changing either social comparison or stress coping style.