Is There Anybody Out There? Coping and Belonging Strategies: Correlations with Depression, Anxiety, and Stress among Latinx Undergraduates

Abstract

The study examined the correlational and predictive relationship between religious coping and a sense of belonging on 202 Latinx undergraduates’ depression, anxiety, and stress. Religious coping refers to the reliance on religious beliefs or practices to cope with stressful life situations. A sense of belonging involves the psychological features of social integration and attachment to a community. The results of a multiple regression analysis found that positive and negative religious coping and a sense of belonging predicted 36% of the variance in Latinx students’ depression. A second regression found positive and negative religious coping, a sense of belonging, and the interaction between positive religious coping and a sense of belonging predicted 29% of the variance in anxiety. A third hierarchical regression found that 21% of the variance in stress levels was attributed to religious coping alone. The results demonstrate that students who utilized positive religious coping reported lower depression, anxiety, and stress levels. Conversely, negative religious coping contributed to depression, anxiety, and stress. A sense of belonging predicted lower depression and anxiety. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

Authoritarian Parenting and Social Anxiety: The Moderating Role of Self-esteem, Introversion and Religious Coping

“…It is concluded that there is a significant negative relation between religious coping strategies and social anxiety in university students. Further, the study showed that there is significant difference exist between males and females on social anxiety while there is non-significant difference exist on religious coping (Moos et al, 1993;Holloway-Friesen, 2023). The findings of a study revealed that social anxiety is considerably positively associated to self-esteem, introversion, and parental authority.…”

Graduate Program Considerations: Which Factors Matter to Students?

“…Consideration of the process from the perspective of students of Color suggests that the pipeline to graduate school can be impacted by student background characteristics (Hipolito-Delgado et al, 2017;Holloway-Friesen, 2018b, 2021, 2023Kranzow, 2019, Kranzow & Hyland, 2011Meyers, 2017;Morelon-Quainoo et al, 2009). In addition, influencing factors include location/residence, financial assistance, the influence of significant others, program faculty, the reputation of the program, and characteristics of the graduate program (Holloway-Friesen, 2018a;2021;Kranzow & Hyland, 2011;Ramirez, 2013).…”

“…There is evidence to suggest that first-generation students consider many of the same factors as continuing-generation students when selecting a graduate program -program quality, faculty, institutional reputation, cost, financial aid, institutional location, faculty-interactions, climate, and sense of belonging (Holloway-Friesen, 2018b, 2018c, 2023Jisha & Pitts, 2004;Morelon-Quainoo et al, 2009;Ramirez, 2013).…”

“…A small body of literature connects first-generation students and students of Color to the factors that motivate them in pursuing their education at both undergraduate and graduate levels (Holloway-Friesen, 2022, 2023Olive, 2014;Simmons et al, 2018). These factors include a desire to help others, a sense of calling, giving back, and career satisfaction (Olive, 2014;Simmons et al, 2018).…”