Stressors and learned resourcefulness in baccalaureate nursing students: a longitudinal study.

Objective: This correlational longitudinal study examined levels and relationships of Learned Resourcefulness (LR), stressors, and academic performance in baccalaureate nursing students at a North Carolina university.

Method: Gadzella's Student-life Stress Inventory (SSI) and Rosenbaum's Self-Control Scale (SCS) administered to 85 students in two groups upon admission and graduation.

Results: LR increased, while stress decreased significantly in both groups (p < 0.05). Both groups (95.3% female, 85.8% Caucasian) reported similarly high frustration, pressure, and emotional reactions to stress. Significant relationship between taking tests and stress (p < 0.01). Stressors (p < 0.05) and age (p < 0.01) significant predictors of academic performance. Significant correlations of LR and work status (p < 0.01), and increased self-esteem (p < 0.05). No significant relationships among LR, stressors, and academic performance.

Conclusion: Results validate high levels of stress and suggest that higher LR enhances coping skills and decreases stress longitudinally, which can improve academic performance and retention.

Implications for international audience: Trends and relationships in stressors and LR should be explored internationally in larger, more diverse samples of college students in nursing and other majors in relation to depression, anxiety, health-related behaviors, demographics, and academic performance. LR can be assessed, taught, learned, and enhanced. Greater numbers of qualified, competent nursing graduates with stronger clinical judgment, coping, and problem-solving skills will address the critical global nursing shortage and improve the quality, safety, and access of health care worldwide.