Can we learn to manage stress? A randomized controlled trial carried out on university students

Abstract

In our research, we examined the efficacy of an Internet-based stress management program. Our interest in evaluating this type of intervention is based on the increasing accessibility of the Internet today, the growth of Internet-based interventions for various psychopathological problems, and the observation that despite the prevalence of stress among university students, only a fraction of students ever seek professional help. Methodology: “I’m managing my stress” (“Je gère mon stresse”), an Internet-based self-help program composed of four sessions, was examined in this study. The aforementioned program is based on cognitive-behavioral therapy and was inspired by the “Funambule” program in Quebec. Four questionnaires (Perceived Stress Scale, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Scale of Satisfaction in Studies, and General Health Questionnaire) uploaded online were answered thrice: during “preintervention”, “postintervention”, and “follow-up” stages, the latter of which occurred three months after the intervention. The sample comprised 128 university students, with the majority being women (81.25%). The subjects were divided randomly into two groups (an experimental group and a control group that did not follow the program). Results: The self-esteem scores of the control group were significantly higher than those of the experimental group at the preintervention stage, but this difference disappeared at the postintervention and follow-up stages. There were also significantly lower scores on the General Health Questionnaire subfactors of somatic symptoms and anxiety/insomnia in the experimental group than in the control group during the postintervention stage, though no differences were observed before the intervention. These differences no longer remained after three months. ANOVA revealed significant effects of the intervention over time in the experimental group. Effects were observed at both the postintervention and follow-up stages for self-esteem, perceived stress, satisfaction in studies, and in the somatic symptoms, anxiety and insomnia and severe depression aspects of the General Health Questionnaire (Cohen’s d = 0.38 to 4.58). In contrast, no effects were observed in the control group. Conclusion: This type of Internet-based program has the ability to reach a large number of students due to its rather short format and accessibility. It has already shown improvements in terms of the levels of perceived stress, psychological distress and satisfaction with studies. The option of online interventions could appeal specifically to students who do not seek professional help. However, even though these results are promising at the postintervention stage, they are limited, as indicated by the lack of significant differences between the two groups after the initial three months of follow-up. We still, specifically, need to improve this intervention program and, generally, need more research to address the methodological problems raised by this type of intervention.Trial registration: ISRCTN registry, ISRCTN13709272

Digital Mental Health Interventions for Depression, Anxiety, and Enhancement of Psychological Well-Being Among College Students: Systematic Review

“…As seen in Multimedia Appendix 2, some studies included more than one type of technology, and thus, the numbers reported in the previous sentence add up to more than the 89 studies included in this review. Although the interventions examined were variable in content and in length, the most common type of intervention examined was internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (n=28 [42,49,50,57,61,68,72-75,79-81,83-86,88,98,101, 103,107,109,112,113,123,128,129]). The modal length of intervention was 8 weeks.…”

“…The majority of interventions studied offered some level of support or guidance to users—many of these interventions featured coaching from a human (n=33 [41,49-51,58 ,62-66,69,71,73,74,76,79,82-88,94,101,104,105,107,116,122,123,128,129]), whereas others featured automated support (n=18 [44,48, 53,57,59,67,70,77,91,98-101,106,108,112,113,115]), such as prescripted emails. Several studies examined self-guided interventions (n=33 [42,43,45,46,52,54-56,60,61,68,72,75,78, 80,81,89,90,92,93,95,97,102,103,109-111,114,118,119,121,124,125]) in which the participants only had contact with the study staff for research assessments; few studies focused on technology as an adjunct to therapy (n=5 [47,86,100,120,126]), 2 studies provided peer support [96,117], and 1 study had an unclear presence of support (n=1 [127]).…”

<p>Examining Anxiety, Life Satisfaction, General Health, Stress and Coping Styles During COVID-19 Pandemic in Polish Sample of University Students</p>

“…Brinkman 48 suggests some strategies focused on increasing awareness of how to manage anxieties and fears and effectively cope with the COVID-19 virus. Saleh et al 49 showed significant improvements in coping with stress, and greater satisfaction with studies among college students, after applying the online self-help program based on cognitive-behavioral therapy, and composed just of four sessions.…”

Perceived Stress, Depression and Alcohol Use Disorders in College Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Socio-Economic Dimension

“…Orucu and Demir [34] recommended the use of this tool across different cultures and also in the student population. This tool consists of a 14-item scale, but its 10item version is widely used in international studies examining students' perceived stress [35][36][37][38][39]. In general, a higher score indicates a higher perceived stress.…”

“…In addition to psychotherapy and treatment, public debate and education about the importance of mental health play a key role in the acceptance of these disorders by society as a whole. Internet-based interventions aimed at reducing stress and mental health problems are also a great opportunity for students who do not seek professional help themselves [38]. Promising interventions may include useful information on websites and social networks, online lectures with experts, online campaigns and challenges focused on good mental health, promotional videos from the perspective of young people.…”