Stress Factors Among College Students

Question: Prepare a research proposal on stress factors and their influence on the quality of life and well-being of college students pursuing final year of the undergraduate course.Proposal, which should not be less than 1000 words and not more than 1100 words.Outline the specifications of your research. Also, clearly define the aims, objectives, rationale for choosing your research topic and timelines for your research tasks. Outline the resources at your disposal for this research.Explain the role of ethical codes and ethics committees in research and prepare a consent form for participants of your research. Answer: Background and Rationale The scientific literature widely supports the contention of the impact of various stress inducing factors and circumstances on the lifestyle and well-being of various nursing undergraduate students across the globe. In fact, nursing population constitute the major proportion of the professionals contributing to the healthcare services in the modern society. The stressed students fraternity indeed predisposed to various health risks and psychosocial problems posing serious threats in developing an efficient health care system. Jeffreys (2012) discuss regarding the clinical evidences supporting the contention of influence of stress factors including nursing educational program, skills assessment and nursing licensing evaluation on the psychological state and academic performance of the nursing college students at various levels. The clinical literature describes variable situations including financial constrains, relationship with the faculty, extent of communication between fellow stu dents, study burden, extreme competition, distance from the college, frequency and criteria of evaluation programs, additional engagements and age of the students as important factors influencing the well being and quality of life of the nursing college students (Landow, 2006:pp. 10-13). The outcomes of this research study may assist the nursing fraternity to efficiently diagnose and identify the stressful circumstances and situations adding to the burden of psychosocial instability, diseases and reduction in the quality of life among the nursing college students of the final year undergraduate course. Proactive identification of these predisposing factors may assist the academicians and healthcare professionals to devise effective remedies to overcome these tracked challenges, with the intent to develop a self sufficient, psychologically stable, committed, knowledgeable and healthy nursing fraternity; well versed in rendering medical services across the globe. Aim and Objectives To investigate the relevance of various stress factors and their influence on the health, well being and quality of life of students undergoing nursing undergraduate courses at various medical colleges in United Kingdom. Objectives and Specifications Retrieve the data in terms of VAS (visual analogue scale) to determine the frequency and intensity of stress inducing circumstances and factors affecting the psychosomatic health of the nursing students undergoing final year of the undergraduate course in different college settings. The study data requires collection from the students in form of questionnaires, with the intent to determine the academic, psychosocial, personal and clinical factors predisposing the target population toward developing mental and health related problems. Study data requires analysis in context to the statistical parameters and existing clinical literature to determine the frequency and prevalence of various stress factors and their intensity and effect on producing stress and mental pressure on the study subjects affecting their well being and quality of life. Perform critical evaluation of the study design, end-points and outcomes to derive conclusions from the study and recommend on further strategies warranted in exploring the contention from the study findings. Research Plan The plan for the study comprises of the predefined steps requiring execution within a timeframe of three months from the date of allocation. The study plan requires configuring the research proposal in the light of the current clinical literature. The informed consent from all nursing college students desirous of participating in the study warranted in context to the ethical perspectives. The study requires execution in terms of distributing the preconfigured questionnaires to the research participants for data collection. The study data needs retrieval and analysis in accordance with the study parameters. The research findings require discussion to conclude the results for final submission. Ethical Considerations and Informed Consent from the Research Participants Any research study conducted on human population requires consideration of ethical norms and perspectives to maintain the dignity and confidentiality of the participants, and to keep the personal information secured and anonymous throughout the study tenure. Santoro Gorrie (2005:p. 41) elaborate regarding the ethical considerations of the clinical studies on the human subjects in accordance with the standards established by Council for International Organizations of Medical Sciences (CIOMS). The ethical issues related to the clinical studies in United Kingdom addressed through various research ethics committees following the standards established by the Central Office for Research Ethics Committees (Leathard McLaren, 2007:pp. 46-47). The study therefore, requires execution in accordance with the ethical parameters after obtaining approval from the research ethics committees of the respective colleges and requesting informed consent from the participants prior to their enrolment in the research program. Methodology The methodology employed to execute the research study based on quantitative and exploratory techniques to track and identify the intensity and frequency of the stress factors affecting the psychosomatic functionality of the research participants. The data initially required from 250 final year nursing students (including 161 males and 89 females) pursuing undergraduate program from five different nursing colleges situated in various locations across United Kingdom. The responses of the nursing college students follow the pattern influenced by Holmes and Rahe rating scale for tracking the stressful circumstances and their influence on the subjects of study (Halter, 2014:p. 172). However, the findings from the research participants obtained from the questionnaire listing multiple academic, financial, social, personal and clinical factors with corresponding stress scales ranging from zero (0) until five (5) to record the frequency and severity of the stressful outcomes resulting from t he causative factors. The statistical analysis of the study findings including frequency, intensity and percentages of the retrieved data required to evaluate and correlate the outcomes and resulting conclusion. Limitations The clinical study limited by less number of participants as compared to the exploratory and descriptive nature of the study. Moreover, the timeframe of three months duration is too short to derive definitive conclusions followed by retrieving concrete clinical evidences. Research Questionnaires The research questionnaire listed various academic factors pertaining to assignment and project deadlines, exam stress, difficult relations with professors and classmates, fear of obtaining less grades in exams, insecurity due to lack of knowledge and expected unemployment after passing the course. The economic factors in the questionnaire correspond to increased financial burden leading to difficulties in managing the course fee and additional professional engagements along with the studentship to overcome the cost constraint. The social and personal factors listed as disturbed interpersonal relationships, familial constraints, lack of leisure time for co-curricular activities and personal development. The clinical factors include lack of confidence in handling patients, lack of clinical and technical knowledge, and fear of failing in execution of nursing activities in a professional environment, any presenting medical morbidity or past medical history influencing the psychosomatic homeostasis. References Halter, M 2014, Varcarolis' Foundations of Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing, Elsevier, Missouri Jeffreys, M 2012, Nursing Student Retention: Understanding the Process and Making a Difference, Springer, NY Landow, M 2006, Stress and Mental Health of College Students, Nova, NY Leathard, A McLaren, S 2007, Ethics: Contemporary Challenges in Health and Social Care, PP, UK Santoro, M Gorrie, T 2005, Ethics and the Pharmaceutical Industry, Cambridge, UK