The Effect of Stress in Learning Adjustment on Coping of 1st and 2nd Year Undergraduate Level Engineering Students in a Dormitory of a University

Abstract

This research aims to compare the stress levels, categorized by gender and academic year, and to evaluate the impact of stress from learning adjustments on the coping mechanisms among first- and second-year engineering undergraduates living in a university dormitory. Data was collected from 125 dormitory residents using stress and coping questionnaires. The Cronbach's Alpha coefficients for reliability were 0.86 for the stress questionnaire and 0.89 for the coping questionnaire. Statistical analyses included t-tests and multiple regression analysis. The findings demonstrated that: 1) Female students reported higher stress levels (M = 2.74, SD = 0.67) than their male counterparts (M = 2.38, SD = 0.51), t(54.54) = 2.88, p = 0.01; 2) Second-year students exhibited higher stress levels (M = 2.70, SD = 0.59) than first-year students (M = 2.34, SD = 0.54), t(96.74) = 3.40, p = 0.05; 3) Learning adjustment stress could predict problem-solving coping by 9 percent, which significantly affects problem-solving coping (β = 0.29,p = 0.01); and 4) Stress related to relationships with friends could predict emotional coping by 14 percent, significantly affecting emotional coping (β = 0.30, p = 0.01).