Ulasan JURNAL tekanan

EDU 3024 PEMBELAJARAN DAN PERKEMBANGAN PELAJAR TAJUK : ULASAN JURNAL

KUMPULAN KULIAH : D PENSYARAH : ABDUL AZIZ BIN ABDUL SHUKOR

DISEDIAKAN OLEH : NAMA : SITI ZUBAIDAH BT IBRAHIM NO MATRIK : D20091035632 SEMESTAR : TIGA

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Isi kandungan

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Isi kandungan

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Pendahuluan

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Ulasan jurnal

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Penutup

Biblografi

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7-8

Lampiran

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Pendahul Pendahu luan

Masalah stress merupakan satu masalah kormesial yang menggangu setiap pelajar di institusi pengajian tinggi. Masalah stress ini ini terlalu sukar sukar untuk ditanggani akan tetapi gangguan stress ini boleh boleh dielakkan melalui dua cara iaitu iaitu melalui cara reaktif dan proaktif. proaktif. Isi kandungan jurnal ini akan membincangkan cara menanggani masalah stress stress melaui cara proaktif yang lebih berkesan berbanding dengan cara reaktif. Pelajar institusi pengajian tinggi banyak mengalami stress dari segi kognatif, emosi dan psikologi yang akan menggugat prestasi pembelajaran mereka. Pelbagai takrifan takrifan yang dibuat dibuat mengenai stress. stress. Antaranya ialah D¶Aurora dan Firman (1998), memberi takrifan stress sebagai ketegangan emosi yang akan meningkat daripada peristiwa yang lalu dan merasakan peristiwa itu sebagai satu ancaman kepada kehidupan mereka. Manakala menurut Roney dan Cooper (1997), menyatakan bahawa stress sebagai reaksi pesakit yang mengalami masalah tekanan yang tinggi dan mereka bimbang jika mereka tidak mampu untuk mengatasi tekanan tersebut. Murdock dan Scott (1993), menyatakan stress stress merupakan merupakan satu reaksi ketidakseimbangan antara permintaan dan kemampuan untuk menanggani stress. Secara keseluruhanya, stress merupakan satu reaksi masalah yang berlaku ekoran daripada pelbagai masalah yang timbul dan menyukarkan untuk mereka mengatasinya. Setiap peristiwa yang berkaitan dengan stress seharusnya kita lebih peka bagi membolehkan sebarang tindakan yang diambil tidak akan menjejaskan menjejaskan pesakit. Oleh sebab itu, itu, seseorang mampu untuk belajar belajar menangani stress secara proaktif. proaktif. Setiap peristiwa yang berlaku seharusnya boleh dijadikan sebagai panduan menanggani stress agar masalah stress ini tidak lagi berulang. Masyarakat di sekitar sekitar pelajar yang yang menghadapi masalah ini ini juga seharusnya lebih peka akan perubahan yang berlaku pada setiap individu di sekeliling mereka agar tidak menghadapi masalah stress stress yang keterlaluan. Individu yang mengalami mengalami masalah stress ini akan mengunakan pendekatan reaktif bagi mengatasi masalah ini akan tetapi mereka mengunakan kedua-dua pendekatan iaitu pendekatan reaktif dan juga pendekatan proaktif dalam menanggani masalah stress.

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Ulasan Jurnal Jurnal

Stres :- Jenis dan Klasifikasi Klasifikasi Stress mempunyai dua kategori iaitu stress yang bersifat sebagai pembina dan stress yang bersifat negatif. negatif. Davidson (1999), telah menyifatkan stress sebagai satu stimulasi stimulasi dan cabaran yang penting dalam pembangunan, pertumbuhan pertumbuhan dan perubahan. Tanpa menghadapi masalah stress manusia manusia akan lalai lalai dengan setiap kemewahan yang mereka perolehi. Oleh sebab itu, itu, mereka akan alpa dan tidak akan berusaha uantuk mendapat satu titik kehidupan yang lebih baik. Strees yang bersifat sebagai pembina ini sangat penting dalam kehidupan manusia dan seharusnya setiap pelajar IPT memerlukan stress yang bersifat sebagai pembina untuk mendapat kejayaan dalam pembelajran dan kehidupan mereka. Makala stress yang bersifat bersifat negatif negatif pula akan menyebabkan seseorang itu manjadi cepat marah, gelisah, merendahkan semangat seseorang dan seterusnya akan menyebabkan menyebabkan kehidupan mereka menjadi menjadi singkat. Hal ini akan merugikan mahasiwa tersebut kerana mereka akan hilang fokus dalam pembelajaran seterusnya akan menyebabkan kehidupan mereka menjadi tidak terurus dan pembelajaran mereka juga akan merosot. Menurut Charles (2000), stress mengandungi empat jenis iaitu:1. Stress yang disebabkan oleh pemikiran mengenai masa depan. 2. Stress yang hadir pada masa berkenaan yang memerlukan jalan penyelesaian yang cepat. 3. Stress yang berterusan dari semasa ke semasa. 4. Stress daripada pengalaman yang lalu. Menurut pengelasan yang telah dibuat oleh Charles (2000), beliau telah mengelaskan bahawa stress mempunyai mempunyai empat peringkat dalam kehidupan kehidupan manusia. Permulaan stress adalah daripada pengalaman masa lalu yang memerlukan seseorang itu menjadi lebih prihatin agar mereka tidak akan mengalami masalah masalah stress yang yang sama pada masa masa akan datang. Pengakhiran stress adalah mengenai pemikiran mengenai masa depan mereka yang menyebabkan terjadinya masalah stress kerana mereka tidak mahu kegagalan dalam kehidupan pada masa akan datang.

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Kajian mengenai stress Masalah stress dalam kalangan mahasiwa berpunca daripada pengurusan masa yang tidak berkesan.

Menurut kajian kajian daripada Samsiah Jayos Jayos (2005) antara 155 pelajar matrikulasi matrikulasi

dijumpai mendapati bahawa 91% daripada bilangan pelajar mendapati bahawa tidak memiliki masa yang cukup untuk menyelesaikan menyelesaikan tugas yang yang diberikan. Selain daripada daripada itu juga, kajian juga mendapati bahawa terlalu banyak tugasan dan mata pelajaran yang diambil akan menyebabkan stress yang yang tinggi. Disamping itu juga, punca stress ini ini berlaku kerana mereka banyak memikirkan memikirkan mengenai peperiksaan yang bakal bakal mereka hadapi. hadapi. Perubahan gaya hidup juga boleh menyebabkan berlakunya stress kerana kebanyakan pelajar yang datang dari pendalaman tidak biasa dengan kehidupan di bandar dan akan menyebabkan stress kerana mereka perlu menyesuaikan diri dengan perubahan persekitaran yang berlaku. Bagi menanggani masalah stress ini pelbagai langkah proaktif perlu diambil agar masalah stress ini tidak akan menggangu pembelajaran mereka. Oleh sebab sebab itu, semua pihak seharusnya lebih peka akan masalah ini dan cuba membantu golongan yang mengalami masalah stress.

Langkah mengatasi stress Terdapat dua kaedah yang digunakan untuk mengatasi masalah stress iaitu kaedah reaktif dan kaedah proaktif. proaktif. Kaedah reaktif kurang berkesan berbanding dengan kaedah proaktif tetapi masih ramai pelajar yang menggunakan menggunakan kaedah reaktif. reaktif.

Kaedah reaktif akan menyebabkan

pelajar akan mengalami kegopohan dalam menyelesaikan masalah tanpa memikirkan masalah tersebut secara mendalam dan matang. Sekiranya emosi seseorang tidak tidak stabil, tindak balas akan menjadikan keadaan atau sesuatu itu tidak stabil. stabil.

Kalau emosinya emosinya resah dan kacau jalan jalan

berfikirnya penuh dengan kekacauan. Faktanya mungkin tidak lengkap. Analisisnya tidak tepat dan kesimpulan yang diambil juga tidak membayangkan adanya pemikiran yang mendalam terhadap sesuatu isu atau perkara. Oleh sebab itu, itu, langkah mengatasi stress secara reaktif kurang berkesan. Kaedah yang kedua untuk mengatasi stress ialah melalui kaedah proaktif. Kaedah ini dikata lebih berkesan berkesan berbanding dengan kaedah reaktif. Orang yang berjaya ialah mereka mereka yang

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melihat masalah masalah melalui perspektif yang yang betul dengan sikap yang betul. Dengan cara demikian demikian ujian bertukar menjadi cabaran, masalah bertukar menjadi peluang, tekanan menjadi rangsangan. Tekanan mempunyai kebaikannya. Sebagai contoh, peperiksaan menyebabkan menyebabkan tekanan, namun namun ia menyebabkan seseorang seseorang membuat persiapan persiapan yang rapi untuk menghadapinya. Tekanan yang berbahaya ialah yang tidak dapat dikawal sehingga membuat seseorang mengalami kesugulan, putus harapan, harapan, keinginan untuk membunuh diri diri dan seumpamanya. seumpamanya. Tekanan yang seperti ini ini dikenali sebagai

tekanan yang yang memudaratkan. Tekanan yang yang baik baik kerana melahirkan melahirkan

rangsangan dan tindakan tindakan yang positif dikenali sebagai eustress. eustress. Oleh sebab itu, itu, pelajar yang mengalami masalah stress ini perlu berfikir secara matang dan menjadikan setiap tekanan itu sebagai cabaran untuk mencapai kejayaan.

Adakah mahasiswa/siswi kita proaktif? proakt if? Mahasiswa/siswi di pengajian tinggi dikatakan mempunyai sikap yang proaktif kerana mereka bersedia menghadapi cabaran dalam kehidupan mereka. Mereka akan melakukan pengubahsuaaian bagi menyesuaikan diri dengan persekitran persekitran mereka. Selain daripada itu itu juga, mereka mempunyai semangat yang tinggi untuk berjaya dan bertanggungjawab dalam menentukan kejayaan dan kegagalan hidup mereka. Oleh sebab itu pelajar pelajar di institusi pengajian tinggi dikatakan proaktif dan hanya terdapat segelintir pelajar yang tidak dapat mengatasi masalah stress.

Jenis-jenis proaktif Proaktif

menghadapi

kemahiran

meliputi

perancangan,

penetapan

tujuan,

pengorganisasian, dan stimulasi stimulasi mental (Aspinwall & Taylor, 1997). Kemahiran Kemahiran perancangan membolehkan para pelajar untuk mencapai segala tujuan yang dirancangkan dengan menggunakan

strategi yang berkesan.

Manakala penetapan

perancangan pula akan

membolehkan para pelajar mengenali apakah tujuan utama mereka dan seharusnya apa yang mereka perlu lakukan untuk mencapai segala tujuan yang telah ditetapkan. Kemahiran pengorganisasian pula merujuk kepada cara bagaimana pelajar berkenaan mengendalikan segala

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perkara yang berkaitan dengan kehidupan mereka agar mencapai segala perancangan dan tujuan yang mereka inginkan. Manakala stimulasi mental pula merujuk kepad a keteguhan mental pelajar dalam menjalani dan mengkoordinasikan segala kemahiran yang mereka ada. Menurut Greenglass, Schwarzer, Jakubiec et al. (1999), terdapat tujuh jenis skala proaktif bagi mengatasi mengatasi perilaku perilaku dan persediaan mereka dan dinamakan sebagai Proaktif Mengatasi Inventory (PCI). Antaranya ialah skala skala mengatasi proaktif, proaktif, skala mengatasi reflectif reflectif , stategi stategi perancangan, jenis pencegahan, sokongan instrumental, sokongan emosional dan jenis

penghindaran.

Perilaku

proaktif

ini

perlu

diajarkan

oleh

para

kaunselor

dalam institusi institusi pendidikan tinggi tinggi untuk melengkapkan teknik pengurusan stress yang yang biasa. Kombinasi proaktif mengatasi mengatasi sebelum dan reaktif mengatasi konstruktif selepas terjadinya stress adalah strategi pengurusan stres terbaik.

Bagaimana pihak lain mampu menolong Pelbagai pihak mampu menolong para pelajar yang menghadapi masalah stress ini melalui pelbagai cara antaranya ialah melalui sokongan sosial yang diberikan kepada pelajar yang menghadapi stress. Keluarga sememangya memainkan peranan penting dalam memberi sokongan sosial sosial kepada anak-anak mereka.

Pelbagai tekanan yang dihadapi mampu diatasi

sekiranya keluarga memainkan peranan yang sempurna dalam memberi sokongan sosial seperti memberi motivasi, nasihat yang membina dan cuba memahami masalah anak-anak sebelum mengambil sebarang tindakan. Sokongan sosial juga diperlukan daripada kawan-kawan, pensyarah dan masyarakat setempat. Dorongan dan motivasi seharusnya diberikan kepada pelajar yang menghadapi masalah stress. Mereka memerlukan semangat yang membina daripada rakan-rakan di sekeliling mereka. Sebarang luahan perasaan yang mereka perkatakan seharusnya diberikan perhatian dan menasihati mereka dengan cara yang berhemah agar perasaan mereka tidak tersentuh dan menambahkan lagi masalah masalah sterss yang yang mereka hadapi. Sekiranya mereka diberikan diberikan dorongan yang membina segala risiko dan masalah yang mereka hadapi boleh diselesaikan dan perkara ini tidak akan menggangu menggangu pembelajaran mereka. Di samping itu itu juga, berkongsi masalah dengan orang yang mereka percayai juga mampu mengurangkan masalah tekanan yang mereka hadapi. 7

Rakan-rakan mereka yang terdekat sangat memainkan peranan yang penting bagi mengurangkan stress yang dihadapi. Ida Hartina (2003), mengatakan bahawa pihak lain mampu mengurangkan bebanan stress yang dihadapi oleh pelajar melalui beberapa cara antaranya ialah dengan mengurangkan bebanan tugas yang diberikan kepada pelajar, pensyarah seharusnya mempunyai masa yang lebih banyak dengan pelajar mereka, melalui persekitaran belajar yang lebih kondusif dan banyak peluang untuk bertemu dengan kaunselor bagi berkongsi masalah dan pendapat.

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Kesimp Ke simpu ulan

Masalah stress ini perlu ditanggani dengan berkesan agar pembelajaran tidak akan terganggu. Bagi mengisi pengisian mengenai cara menanggani menanggani masalah stress ini para pelajar perlu untuk manghadiri manghadiri kursus dan seminar

yang berkaitan dengan stress.

Setiap pelajar

seharusnya pandai mengatasi masalah stress supaya tidak akan menjejeska pembelajaran mereka. Pelbagai cara boleh digunakan untuk mengatasi mesalah stress ini dan semuanya bermula dari dalam diri setiap setiap pelajar. Masyarakat sekeliling hanya sebagai pembantu dan pendengar masalah yang dihadapi oleh mereka sahaja tetapi segala tindakan bagi mengatasi masalah stress ini akan dilakukan sendiri oleh pelajar berkenaan. Hasil daripada pembacaan jurnal ini dapat disimpulkan terdapat dua cara bagi menanggani masalah stress yang yang boleh dilakukan oleh setiap pelajar. Segala cara yang diambil bagi mengatasi masalah stress ini mempunyai kelebihan dan kelemahanya yang tersendiri dan ianya bergantung kepada cara bagaimana pelajar itu sendiri yang menanggani masalah stress yang dihadapi oleh mereka.

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Bibliograf ibliograf i Arthur, H., & Hiebert, B. (1994). Investigating (1994). Investigating gender differences on coping. Paper presented at the annual meeting and the exhibition of the American Research Association. CD-ROM. No. ED 373848. Aspinwall, L. G., & T aylor, aylor, S. S . E. (1997). A stitch in time: Self-regulation and proact ive coping. Psychological coping. Psychological Bulletin, 121,417-436. 121,417-436. Charles, C. L. (2000). Why is everyone so cranky? New cranky? New York: St. Martin's Press. Compas, B. (1987). Coping Co ping with stress during childhood and adolescence. Psychological adolescence. Psychological Bulletin, 101, 393-403. Corey, G., & Corey, M. S. (1997). / never knew I had a choice (6th ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. Dacey, J., & Kenny, M. (1997). Adolescent (1997). Adolescent development (2nd development (2nd ed.). Boston: McGrawHill. D'Aurora, D. L., & Fimian,M. F imian,M. J. (1988). Dimensions of life snd school stress experienced by young people. Psychology people. Psychology in the Schools, 25,44-53. 25,44-53. Davidson, J. (1999). The complete idiot's guide to managing stress (2nd ed.). New York: Alpha Books. Greenglass, E., Fiksenbaum, L., & Burke, R. J. (1996). Components of social support, buffering effects and burnout: Implications for psychological functioning. Anxiety, functioning. Anxiety, Stress, and Coping, 9, 185-197. Greenglass, E., Schwarzer, R., Jakubiec, D., Fiksenbaum, L., & Taubert, S. (1999, July 12-14). The Proactive Coping Inventory (PCI): A multidimensional research instrument. Paper presented at the 20th 2 0th International Conference on Stress an Anxiety Research Society (Star), Cracow, Poland. Greenglass, E. R. (2001), Proactive Pro active coping, work stress and burnout. Stress News, 13(2), 5-8. Greenglass, E. R., Schwarzer, R., & Taubert, S. (1999). The Proactive Coping Inventory (PCI): A multidimensional research instrument. On-line publication, available athttp://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~health/greenpci.htm

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Holmes, T. H., & Rahe, R. H. (1967). Social Readjustment Rating Scale. J ournal ournal of Psychosomatic Research, ii, 213-218. Ida Hartina Ahmed Tharbe (2003, Oktober 19-21). Memahami stres di kalangan remaja di pusat pengajian tinggi. Prosiding tinggi. Prosiding Seminar Kebangsaan Memperkasakan Sistem Pendidikan. Fakulti Pendidikan, Universiti Tekno logi Malaysia. McFarlane, A. H., Belli Be llissimo, ssimo, A., Norman, G. R., &Lange, P. (1994). Adolescent depression in a school based community co mmunity sample: Preliminary findings on contributing social factors. J ournal ournal of Youth and Adolescence, 23(6), 601-620. Murdock, A., & Scott, C. (1993). Personal (1993). Personal effectiveness. London: Heinemann. Peach, L. (1991). A (1991). A study concerning stress among high school students in selected rural schools. Paper presented at the Annual Education Conference, Cookeville, TN. August, 12, 1991. (CD-ROM). ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 336253. 66 Masalah 66 Masalah Pendidikan 2006, Universiti Malaya Roney, A., & Cooper, C. (1997). Professionals (1997). Professionals on workplace stress: The essential facts. facts. New York:Wiley Yo rk:Wiley.. Samsiah Jayos (2005). Tekanan di kalanganpelajar Matrikulasi di sebuahpusatpengajian tinggi. Unpublished Project Paper, Masters of Counseling, University of Malaya. Schwarzer, R. (1999). The Proactive Attitude Scale (PA Scale), [Online publication] Available at http://userpage.fu-berlin.de/~health/proactive.htm Taylor, S. E., & Brown, J. D. (1994). Positive illusions and wellbeing revisited: Separating fact from fiction. Psychological fiction. Psychological Bulletin, 116,21-27. 116,21-27. Weiten,W., & Lloyd, M. A. (1994). Psychology (1994). Psychology applied to modern life: Adjustment Ad justment in the 90s (4th ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/ Brook s/ Cole. West, C. K., & Wood, E. S (1970). Academic pressure on o n public school students. Educational Leadership, 3(4), 585-587. Youngs, B. B. (1986). Helping (1986). Helping your teenagers deal with stress. stress. New York: St Martin's Press.

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LAMPIRAN

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Masalah Pendidikan 2006, Universiti Malaya 57 COPINGWITH NGWITH

STRESS: ARE OUR ST STUDENT UDENTS PR OACTIVE? TIVE?

Ida Harti artina Ahm Ahmed Tharb harbe Department Department of Educational Psychology and Counseling Faculty of Education University of Malaya

Stres berlaku kepada semua orang termasuklah pelajar di institusi pengajian tinggi disebabkan oleh pelbagai jenis cabaran yang timbul semasa proses pembelajaran. Walaupun stres tidak dapat dielakkan, namun pelajar boleh mempelajari cara menguruskan dan menangani stres dengan lebih berkesan, untuk membantu mereka agar lebih cemerlang dalam pembelajaran. Secara tradisi, individu lebih berfokuskan strategi pengurusan stres secara reaktif yang mungkin bersifat membina atau memudaratkan. Namun, penyelidik-penyelidik penyelidik-penyelidik mendapati strategi menangani stres secara proaktif adalah lebih berkesan dalam mengurangkan kesan stres sebelum berlakunya sesuatu peristiwa yang menyebabkan tekanan. Artikel ini membincangkan, antaranya jenis-jenis stres yang dialami oleh pelajar, pelbagai ciriciri ' coping' secara proaktif dan bagaimana individu lain dapat membantu pelajar menjadi proaktif dalam usaha menangani stres. Living life as students in an institution of higher education is never an easy task. Here, students will face the harsh realities of life which challenge them not only cognitively but emotionally and psychologically as well. Hence stress is not uncommon among students in higher learning institutions. institutions. By understanding how these students cope with stress, the parents, lecturers, advisors and administrators can assist students i n managing it. Stress has been defined in several ways. D'Aurora a nd Firman (1988) defined stress as an emotional tension rising from life events, or as a feeling of threat to someone's safety or self-esteem. Meanwhile, Roney and Cooper (1997) stated that "stress is the reaction people have to excessive pressures and other types of demands placed on them. It generally arises when they worry that they are not able t o cope" (p. 5). Murdock and Scott (1993) defined stress as the imbalance between the perception of demand and the perception of the ability to cope with it. Despite the various definitions, the fact remains that a person has to cope with stress whenever it arises. Although one cannot eliminate stress, one can learn to monitor and manage stress effectively. This will require some stress coping skills. Individuals can either react to a stressful event or prepare for the stressful event before it happens. In the former scenario, individuals will most probably use the reactive coping skills to manage the stressful event while in the latter, they use the proactive coping skill to prepare themselves themselves for the effect of the stressful event. This article will discuss stress a nd coping among students and how others can help the students to become more proactive in coping with stress.

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58 Masalah 58 Masalah Pendidikan 2006, Universiti Malaya

Stress Stre ss:: Type Types and Classif ssif icat icatio ion n

Although we often speak of stress in a negative manner, manner, it is helpful to know that there are two types of stress, namely good stress and bad stress. Good stress is also known as eustress. According to Davidson (1999) such stress provides stimulation and challenge and is essential to development, growth and change. Good stress can also be related to motivation, without which human beings will not strive to achieve greater heights. Meanwhile, the bad stress or distress makes one anxious and irritable, dampens the spirit and shortens one's life (Davidson, 1999), due to its adverse psychological and physical effects. For the purpose of discussion in t his article, stress will refer to bad stress or distress. Charles (2000) categorizes stress into four types: 1. Anticipatory stress or stress caused by concern over the future. Anticipatory stress can be negative if it causes unnecessary anxiety. However, a nticipatory nticipatory stress can be productive if a person takes the initiative to plan for the future as a result of anticipating any stressful event. 2. Situational stress or stress of the moment. moment. This type t ype of stress comes together with the event and requires immediate management. Managing it effectively means keeping the pressures of the moment at a challenging but containable level. The failure to manage situational stress immediately might result in the other types of stress - chronic or residual stress. 3. Chronic Stress or stress that persists over time. It might be the result of the inability to cope effectively or a tough experience over which an individual has no control such as death or loss of a loved one or an accident. 4. Residual stress or stress of the past. It represents the inability or unwillingness to let go of old hurts or bad memories. Individuals who tend to repress their feelings have the tendency to experience residual residual stress due to the failure to face reality. Stress results from positive and negative events. Holmes and Rahe (1967) have developed a scale called the Social Readjustment Rating Scale w hich measures the life events which are likely to produce stress. The scale includes both positive and negative life events. All of these events, whether positive or negative, involve changes which require a period of readjustment for the individual. This scale implies that stress is unlikely the result of a single event but rather a combination of several events which occur in a limited period. The inability of a person to cope with all these stressors at once will lead to harmful stress.

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Masalah Pendidikan 2006, Universiti Malaya 59

Study Stud y and Stress Stre ss

Virtually no one feels free from stress and each of us defines stress somewhat differently (Youngs, 1986). Studying can be as stressful as working. However, stress in learning is also a subjective phenomenon. For some students, making a presentation in front of the class is not stressful while, for others, it is the end of the world. Some students consider quizzes as good challenges to their potential while others find them hard to handle. In other words, how one labels, interprets, thinks about and r eacts to events in one's life has a lot to do with determining whether those events are stressful (Corey & Corey, 1997). Moreover, students who prepare themselves for such events are most likely to experience less stress than those who fail to do so. Many students reported experiencing stress during their studies. O ne of the causes of stress among a mong college and university students is ineffective time management. Quality time is something often neglected by students whether good or average. The so-called good students often over-scheduled their time for study-related tasks while others underscheduled their precious time with unproductive activities thus increasing their stress level. A study by Samsiah Jayos (2005) among 155 matriculation matriculation students found that 91 percent of the students regard not having enough time for revision as the main source of stress. Meanwhile, 65.2 percent argued that they do not have enough time to complete assignments. Is this the sign of work overload or ineffective time management? Academic workload is undoubtedly another source of stress for students. The same research reported that too many assignments and too many subjects to be taken have caused stress for 73.5 percent and 72.3 percent percent of the t he students respectively (Samsiah (Samsiah Jayos, 2005). Peach (1991) had studied 240 students in Tennessee and found that 65 percent of female students and 56 percent of male students experience academic stress due to assignment workloads. Similarly, a research study on 94 students of an i nstitute in South Alberta found that among the stressors for both female and male students is academic workload (Arthur & Hiebert, 1994). Another famous stressor among students is the expectation of academic achievement. This includes the expectation of examination performance and expectation of the academic results. A survey conducted by West and Wood (1970) reported that 65 percent of 331 students in nine American high schools experience stress just by t hinking about the examination examination before they actually sit for it. Meanwhile, 59 percent of the students expressed that low achievement in the examination also causes a high level of stress. If high school examinations imposed so much stress, how would it be for university examinations? The list of stressors is endless. e ndless. Research conducted by Ida Hartina Ahmed Tharbe (2003) using the Social Readjustment Rating Scale (Holmes & Rahe, 1967) on 58 subjects identified several several changes in lifestyle as the cause of stress for students. Among the changes are: the change in eating habit (66 percent), change in sleeping and living habit (64 percent respectively), change in social activities and change in financial status (50 percent respectively). respectively). Using the t he Teen Scene: Stress Test (Youngs, 1986) the sa me research found other stressors which include: not performing as well as expected (66 percent), putting too much hope on oneself (64 percent), not being as popular as one wanted (56 percent), fear of being let down by friends (56 percent) percent) and peer pressure (50 percent). 60 Masalah 60 Masalah Pendidikan 2006, Universiti Malaya

Therefore, it is relatively true to say that stress is not merely caused by a single event but rather by a combination of life events. Perhaps one of the obvious flaws in stress management among students, besides time management, management, is the inability to plan for upcoming obstacles in the study process. Students should foresee challenges and problems and prepare themselves for anticipatory anticipatory stress which is more manageable. They can gather information on possible stressors through 14

various ways including discussion with their seniors, advisors, lecturers, counselors and other resources in the university. However, many students are unaware of the need to prepare in advance for academic challenges. This will lead to reactive stress coping style once they experience situational stress. If the students fail to manage the situational stress effectively, effectively, it may later lead to residual or chronic stress. Frustration, conflict, change and pressure have been identified by Weiten and Lloyd (1994) as the main elements of psychological stress. Continuous stress can result in burnout among students; the students usually feel emotionally exhausted and l ose interest in their studies, thus neglecting their pursuit of excellence. In other words, numbers of higher education dropouts may increase if students do not learn effective stress management. According to Corey and Corey (1997), the problem with students is that they do not notice the warning signs that they have pushed themselves to the breaking point. They give too much time to their studies and assignments that they fail to realize the importance of maintaining maintaining relationships and spending some leisure time for themselves . What is Pro Proactive ive Coping? oping? Compas (1987) denned coping as any effort used in res ponse to a stressful event. It can be manifested behaviorally, cognitively or emotionally. The type of coping method used will determine whether stress will have negative or positive psychological effects. Not everyone knows how to cope effectively with stress. Some might leam coping skills from previous experiences while others might have to resort to trial and error experimentation. For effective stress management, one may use the reactive or the proactive coping methods. People are mainly more familiar with reactive coping methods whereby we react in a certain way when a stressful event occurs. Although the reactive coping skill has been argued as being less effective, it can help to manage stress significantly if it is done constructively. Weiten and Lloyd (1994) identified constructive coping as behavioral reaction to stress that tends to be relatively healthy or adaptive. According to Corey and Corey (1997, p. 218) constructive coping skills skills have the following characteristics: characteristics: a) Involves direct confrontation with a problem; problem; b) Entails staying in t une with reality; c) Based on an accurate and realistic appraisal of a stressful situation rather than distortion of reality; d) Involves learning to recognize and i nhibit harmful emotional reaction to stress; e) Entails a conscious conscious and rational effort to evaluate alternative courses of a ction; and f) Is not dominated by wishful or dysfunctional thinking.

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A more effective method of stress coping has been identified as the proactive coping method. Proactive coping strategy is multidimensional and forward looking as it integrates processes of personal quality of life management with those of self-regulatory goal attainment attainment (Greengl (Gr eenglass, ass, 2001). Greenglass also differentiates differentiates between the characteristics characteristics of reactive and proactive coping as follows: a) Traditional or reactive coping mostly deals with stressful events that already occurred with the aims of compensating for loss or harm in the past; proactive coping is more future orientated and consists of efforts to build up general resources that facilitate promotion of challenging goals and personal growth. b) Reactive coping is regarded as risk management; proactive coping involves goal management management whereby individuals see ris ks, demands and opportunities in t he future but they do not appraise them as threat, harm or loss. c) Reactive coping emanates from risk appraisal whereby environmental demands are appraised as threats; the motivation for proactive coping is positive since it derives from perceiving situations as challenging and stimulating. Although both reactive and proactive coping are useful, reactive coping is only suitable for situational, chronic and residual stress w hile proactive coping method also includes the management of anticipatory stress.

Are Our Students Student s Pro Proactive? ive?

Our students face challenges everyday. They are struggling with assignments, attending lectures and seminars, preparing for class presentations, presentations, particip par ticipating ating in co-curricular co-curricular activities activities and many other related tasks. A part from all these, they are also trying to negotiate the period of transition into adulthood. The combination of these life events places a great deal of stress upon them. Therefore it is highly beneficial for students to be proactive in their daily life. The process through which people anticipate or detect potential stressors and act in advance to prevent them can be seen as a proactive behavior behavior (Greenglass, Schwarzer, Jacubiec, Fiksenbaum, Fiksenbaum, & Taubert, 1999) and it iiss potentially useful in eliminating a great deal of stress before it happens. Students with proactive coping style tend to face fewer problems in their studies s ince they are well prepared for adverse events. Proactive students know how to plan strategies to help them reduce the effect of stress. At the same time, they will make full use of available resources around them. They do not see themselves as victims of the situation and do not put the blame on something or someone else. Cognitively, proactive coping involves re flection including envisioning success scenarios, anticipating future problems, planning how to deal with the situation and taking preventive steps to avoid disaster (G reenglass, Schwarzer, & Taubert, 1999). Schwarzer (1999) listed the personality characteristics of proactive individuals as follows: a) They believe that they possess sufficient resources, both internal and external; b) They take responsibility for their own growth, including responsibility for past events and responsibility for their future actions; c) They are driven by values and principles whereby they choose their path of action accordingly; accordingly; and a nd

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d) They have vision and create meaning in life by striving for ambitious goals. Some of the students s tudents are proactive by nature. They have learned through experience and observation how to tackle a stressful situation even before it happens. However, others tend to resort to reactive coping behaviors which are not constructive but destructive for them. As a result, reactive students will perform less effectively than proactive students. Some of these destructive coping behaviors are: a) Avoiding or refusing to attend class for unrealistic reasons (e.g. not attending class because the lecture is boring); b) Involving in related activities for the wrong reason (e.g. involving in too many co-curricular co-curricular activities as a way to forget study stress); c) Wasting time by involving in unrelated activities (e.g. chatting or hanging out with friends); d) Avoiding the source of the problem (e.g. if students do not understand the subject, they tend to avoid revising it); e) Putting the blame on someone else for inability to perform (e.g. saying that "the course is too difficult" or "the lecturer has no teaching skills"); f) Sleeping more than usual; and g) Spending too much time worrying but not doing anything about the situation. Pro Proactive ive Coping oping Sk ills ills Proactive coping skills include planning, goal setting, organizing and mental stimulation (Aspinwall & Taylor, 1997). According to Greenglass (2001), proactive proactive coping is distinguished by three main features: a) it integrates integrates planning and preventive strategies strategies with proactive pr oactive self-regulatory self-regulatory goal attainment; b) it integrates proactive goal attainment with identification and utilization of social resources; and c) it utilizes proactive emotional coping for self-regulatory goal attainment. Greenglass, Schwarzer, Jakubiec et al. (1999) include seven scales of proactive coping behaviors in their inventory named the Proactive Coping Inventory (PCI). The seven scales are: The Proactive Coping s cale, The Reflective Coping Scale, Strategic Planning, Preventive Coping, Instrumental Support Seeking, Emotional Support Seeking and Avoidance Coping. Descriptions of these proactive coping behaviors are as follows: a) Pro Proactive ive Coping oping refers to the combination of autonomous goal setting with self-regulatory self-regulatory goal attainment, attainment, cognition and behavior; b) Ref lective ive Coping oping refers to simulation and contemplation about a variety of possible behavioral alternatives alternatives by b y comparing their imagined effectiveness. effectiveness. This process includes brainstorming, analyzing problems and resources and generating hypothetical plans of action; c) Strategic Strategic Planni anning refers to the process of generating a goal-oriented schedule of action in which extensive tasks are broken down into manageable components;

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d) Prev Prevent entiv ivee Coping oping deals with anticipation of potential stressors and making preparation before these stressors develop fully; e) Instru trum mental ental Suppo Support rt Seek ing refers to the process of obtaining advice, information and feedback from one's social network when dealing with stressors; f ) Emot motiona ionall Suppo Support rt Seek ing is the process of regulating temporary emotional distress by disclosing to others one's feelings, evoking empathy and seeking companionship companionship from one's social network; and g) Avoidan voidancce Coping oping is the process of eluding action in a demanding situation. Tertiary level students should be made aware of these proactive coping behaviors for more effective stress management. These proactive behaviors can be taught by counselors in the higher learning institutions to supplement the usual stress management management techniques. The combination of proactive coping before and constructive reactive coping after the stressors occur is the best stress management strategy. At the same time, students can take their own initiative in becoming more proactive by: a) Learning to anticipate stress through valid information gathering. gathering. However, H owever, only realistic anticipation is encouraged since unnecessary worries will only lead to higher stress levels; b) Learning to read their own biological signs of stress and finding ways of controlling stress before the symptoms worsen; c) Joining counseling or growth groups in which they can learn new skills of coping, self-disclose and discuss their day-to-day concerns; d) Broadening their social network and improving communication style with others; e) Arranging appointments with academic advisors or lecturers to discuss any academic difficulties; and f) Preparing themselves with the c onstructive onstructive stress management management skills such s uch as time management, planning, brainstorming, relaxation techniques and so forth. How Other therss Can Help Although proactive coping behavior is self-induced by an individual, other significant people can also help students to be more proactive. Dacey and Kenny (1997) identified identified social support as an important factor in a person's ability to remain composed and to adapt successfully to stressful situations. The most significant social support will be the student's own family. According to research by McFarlane, Bellissimo, Norman, and Lange (1994), teens who viewed their parents and siblings as sources sources of s upport are at low risk for developing adolescent depression. University students should also be encouraged to make optimum use of available social support such as close friends, lecturers, advisors and other supportive persons when coping with stress. By having supportive individuals around, students can share their problems and find useful alternatives of coping. Greenglass, Fiksenbaum and B urke (1996) believe that close relationships will provide useful information information and practical advice besides boosting morale, thereby helping individuals to cope with stressful events.

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Ida Hartina (2003) pointed out that other parties such as the lecturers, management and counselors should also take measures to help the students lessen the negative effect of stress. Several suggestions have been given such as: a) Lecturers should consider reducing the a mount of assignments or workload given. The course assignment should be based on quality instead of quantity. The best assignment should be able to i ntegrate the whole course information; b) Lecturers should spend some time getting to know the s tudents individually individually to provide consultation for them when required; c) The management should recognize potential stressors in the learning environment. Stressors resulting from ineffective i neffective academic academic staff, uncooperative uncooperative support staff, uncomfortable uncomfortable learning environment, and lack of basic infrastructure can be monitored or avoided; and d) Counselors can organize stress management management workshops to help students identify, manage and anticipate stressors. Motivational and informative programs are helpful in disseminating information to help students cope. However, as stated earlier, students have to take initiative to build their own social support system. This will require them to be more confident, confident, optimistic, open to experiences and willing to s elf-disclose and share their concerns with others. Selfconfident and optimistic individuals have more social support and they may be more effective in mobilizing mobilizing it when they experience high levels of s tress (Taylor & Brown, 1994). Meanwhile, Aspinwall and Taylor (1997) believed that individuals individuals who have well developed psychosocial psychosocial resources, including a sense of personal control, high s elf-esteem and optimism, are more likely to cope proactively and minimize the effects of stress.

Conclu cl usion sion

For effective stress management, students in higher learning institutes should learn to anticipate anticipate stressful events as s oon as they enroll and during their course of study. B eing proactive means integrating the ability to foresee future challenges and obstacles and planning to manage them effectively using all available resources. A person can be naturally proactive or learn to be proactive. Proactive stress management can help students reduce the negative effect of stressful events. By being proactive, students will be able to concentrate more more on their studies and a chieve good grades rather that putting their energy into unproductive behaviors and unnecessary worries. It will also produce psychologically healthy individuals in the future.

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