Stressors and Coping Strategies of the Saudi Nursing Students in the Clinical Training: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Nursing students often encounter high levels of stress through clinical practice that may cause psychological or emotional problems during their professional life eventually affecting the quality of patient care they provide. The aims of the current study were to identify the level and types of stress perceived by nursing students in their clinical practice and to identify the coping strategies that students used to relieve their stress. A descriptive, cross-sectional design was used in this study. A total of 200 students who were enrolled in the nursing program were taken as study respondents. Research data were collected using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and the Coping Behavior Inventory (CBI). Data was analyzed using one-way ANOVA test, Pearson’s test, and independent sample t-test on SPSS version 22. Findings indicated that nursing students experienced a high level of stress. The most common coping strategy utilized by the students was problem solving, while avoidance was the least frequently used one. Saudi nursing students experienced stress levels above the mean in clinical training. The most common stressors were related to assignments and workload. The study recommends that clinical curriculum requirements and the workload of nursing students should be reviewed.