The Challenges of College: How Students Cope with Stress

The purpose of this research is to identify what types of coping mechanisms utilized by college students. Stress plays a significant role in college student’s lives and influences the types of coping mechanisms used. This study used a qualitative phenomenological approach to examine work-school conflict, its accompanying demands and how it affects student use of adaptive versus maladaptive coping strategies. One-on-one interviews were conducted with 31 college students who were primarily psychology majors, female, and Caucasian. Results showed that college students who participated in this study were more likely to engage in adaptive coping mechanisms compared with maladaptive coping mechanisms. Physical activity was reported as being the most adaptive mechanism while venting, watching TV, Netflix, and YouTube and playing video games were reported as the most maladaptive mechanisms used. The findings from this study elicit a better understanding of how stress is perceived by students and interpreted into their everyday lives. This allows for further research exploration on ways to reduce maladaptive coping behaviors in students and to gain insight on interventions that could be used to alter how a student views perceived stressors