Open Collections

Role stress : a descriptive study of the types, dimensions, and management of role stress in Master’s of Science in Nursing students

University of British Columbia

This descriptive study was designed to elicit information about common types, dimensions, and management of role stress in Master's of Science in Nursing students. A semi-structured, standardized interview guide was developed by the researcher for this purpose. It was utilized with 15 respondents drawn from the population of Master's of Science in Nursing students enrolled at The University of British Columbia between 1974 and 1979. Eight of the participants were graduates of the Master's of Science in Nursing program and seven were withdrawals or transfers from the program. The data collected were summarized and categorized by the process of content analysis and descriptive statistics were applied. The results of this study suggest that most students found the Master's of Science in Nursing program stressful. The greatest source of stress recalled by both groups was difficulty in meeting multiple obligations to other people within the time available. The group who terminated with the program remembered experiencing greater difficulty in this area, than the group who graduated. The group of participants who withdrew or transferred from the Master's program also experienced greater conflict with faculty, in terms of their values and attitudes as graduate nursing students, than did those participants who graduated from the Master's program. Probable factors related to attrition appear to be the adequacy of supportive resources such as faculty and fellow students, the heavy workload of studies concurrent with other commitments, and financial pressures. Both groups of participants favoured the use of problem-solving for stress management. Athletic activity, open negotiation with others about difficulties in meeting obligations, and curtailment in the number of obligations to others were also widely used by both groups of participants. Further research is required to validate these findings and add to knowledge regarding stress and its management by graduate students.

Text

2010-03-23

For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.

http://hdl.handle.net/2429/22323

Nursing

University of British Columbia

Graduate