Campus Location
Dallas Campus (Online)
Date of Award
11-2020
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9236-3209
Document Type
DNP Project
Department
Nursing
Degree Name
Doctor of Nursing Practice
Committee Chair or Primary Advisor
Sandra Cleveland
Second Committee Member or Secondary Advisor
Theresa Naldoza
Third Committee Member or Committee Reader
Tonja Hartjes
Abstract
This project analyzed the effects of guided meditations and a stress management class on undergraduate, prelicensure nursing students’ perceived stress levels. College students and professional nurses are both susceptible to having high stress levels. Mindfulness activities have been shown to lower stress levels. Undergraduate, prelicensure nursing students participated in this project determining the effects of guided meditations and a stress management class on perceived stress levels in a quantitative, pre- and postinterventional study. Participants in the project completed a stress management class and 18 guided meditation sessions in an undergraduate classroom setting. The researcher used the Perceived Stress Scale-10 (PSS-10) to measure the effects of the intervention. Results showed a statistically insignificant difference between pre- and postintervention PSS-10 mean scores. Participants’ free responses were positive, and they found the interventions beneficial. Half of the participants had the same or a lower PSS-10 score following the intervention. The COVID-19 pandemic emerged during the intervention period for this project, possibly changing the effectiveness of the intervention.
Despite the statistically insignificant results, participants expressed benefits from the guided meditations, and these could be incorporated into the classroom setting. The school of nursing, where the study took place, can analyze other areas where meditations could be added for possible stress relief.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Dodd, Caitlin, "Lowering Perceived Stress Levels in Undergraduate Nursing Students" (2020). Digital Commons @ ACU, Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 271.
https://digitalcommons.acu.edu/etd/271