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Examining the Acceptability and Effectiveness of a Self-Directed, Web-Based Resource for Stress and Coping in University
Sponsor: McGill University
Summary
University students consistently report high levels of stress and psychological distress and identify these as key factors that negatively impact their academic performance and engagement with their studies. Supporting students in effectively coping with stress and distress is of critical importance to facilitate learning and development in university environments. To that end, technology-based approaches to delivering stress-management and well-being supports to university students have proliferated on campuses as supplemental means of supporting student stress management, coping capacity, and well-being. Indeed, online resources for students' self-directed use such as websites, apps, or on-demand workshops, are increasingly popular given their benefits in improving access to support as well as the potential for reaching students who may be reluctant to seek other forms of mental health support or are on waiting lists for more specialized services. In addition, the provision of resources for addressing stress and enhancing coping capacity is aligned with the recently proposed health theory of coping which calls for enhancing the availability of evidence-based healthy coping strategies. However, investigation into the acceptability and even more critically the effectiveness of online, self-directed resources for non-clinical stress-management and healthy coping support is limited. Thus, this study sought to explore the acceptability and effectiveness of a self-directed, web-based resource for enhancing students' stress-management and coping capacity. Furthermore, the study also examined if there would be any added benefit of screening students to assess stress and coping needs and then directing them to specific resources to match their needs for stress-management and healthy coping support.
Official title: Does it Work? Examining the Acceptability and Effectiveness of a Self-Directed, Web-Based Resource for Stress and Coping in University: Randomized Controlled Trial
Key Details
Gender
All
Age Range
18 Years - Any
Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Enrollment
242
Start Date
2022-10-02
Completion Date
2022-12-28
Last Updated
2026-10-08
Healthy Volunteers
Yes
Interventions
stress management and coping
Online intervention focusing on stress and coping in university students. All resources were grouped into five main categories: managing stress, enhancing performance, adulting, socialising, and well-being. The resource was hosted on a website and presented information in several multimedia formats (i.e., text, audio, video, interactive infographic) to account for diversity of preferences. All students in the intervention groups were provided with unlimited access to the intervention. Furthermore, all students were asked to complete screener questions on their stress and coping, but only students in the intervention group were directed to one of three unique pages on the website based on their responses on the screening questionnaire, demonstrating low, moderate, or high need for support around stress and coping.
Locations (1)
McGill University
Montreal, Quebec, Canada