Analysis of Stress Tolerance: New Challenges for Millennial College Students Article - Essay Example

?Mohammad Alnassir Tulley English 1042 3 July Article Review for the article “Stress Tolerance: New Challenges for Millennial College Students” This article was published by Helen W. Bland, Bridget F. Melton, E, Paul Welle, S.B a and Lauren Bigham on 06/01/2012 (Hellen et al. 362). The topic of the article is “Stress Tolerance: New Challenges for Millennial College Students”. Transitions in life such as going to college create an opportunity for independence, change and growth. They form a foundation for developing one’s identity and autonomy. These transitions are highly stressful and college years have been known to be the most stressful times in life. This stress is caused by academic, personal and social challenges. Students are expected to perform demanding tasks while adjusting to their new environment under minimal supervision. This stress has a negative impact on them which results to smoking, alcohol abuse and eating disorders. Research has shown that stress experienced in this period decreases mental health which leads to depression and low self esteem. Stress has become a major concern for the millennial student population and there is need to analyze this topic in relation to stress tolerance. It is important to note that people react differently to similar stressors. This paper agrees with this article and shall go into detail to explain why. College years are regarded as being the most stressful time in one’s life. The millennial age bracket has distinct features that entail the way they handle stressors. The sole purpose of the research discussed in the text was to make out lifestyle habits and coping approaches that are related to varying levels of stress tolerance among the millennial students in their college years. The methodology applied in this research was a random questionnaire that was conducted in a randomly selected college. The questionnaire included coping strategies, symptoms and checklists for stressors. The subjects were grouped into high stress tolerance and low stress tolerance and the STRs (Stress Tolerance Ratios) determined (Hellen et al. 362). From the results obtained, ten coping factors were connected to high stress tolerance, nine were put one in a situation of low stress tolerance while one was a protective factor. According to the findings of the study, it is clear that the lifestyle habits and coping mechanisms presently being used are ineffective. These strategies also put millennial students in a position of low stress tolerance. This article seeks to address the problem of stress experienced by millennial college students during the transition period. The study also identifies the strategies that are linked to low or high stress tolerance. This population is characterized by unique features thereby their stressors are also distinctive (Hellen et al. 365); thus the need for the application of non conventional coping methods. If some coping strategies are efficient, it is possible for students to develop their stress tolerance, not taking action when the stress is out of hand. This article mainly targets the college administration, teachers and general staff. It is an informative article that has information on the causes and symptoms of stress in the learning environment. It can be used as framework for formulating stress coping strategies. The article is also valuable to parents since it helps them to understand behavior of the millennial students and give them the necessary support throughout this period. The subjects themselves are educated on how to cope with stress and develop high stress tolerance to the highly stressful college period. This is as clearly indicated in the essay. ‘Stress Tolerance: New Challenges for Millennial College Students’ is an effective essay because it is has been written is a clear language, has used supportive evidence to build on its argument and used transition statements to enhance flow. The writer has used simple and clear statements that are easy to read and understand. The essay has clearly outlined its major arguments and used evidence to show their relevance. For instance, the study that was conducted was used to show that the stress coping strategies currently being employed are inefficient (Hellen et al. 362). As already mentioned, the usefulness of this article is top notch. The article is based on three main arguments. First, the authors argue that transition to college is faced by social, education and emotional challenges that result to high stress levels. Second, millennial students at college level have unique attributes and this makes it even more difficult for them to cope with stress (Hellen et al. 365). Third, the authors noted that lifestyle behavior and coping mechanism that are being used by students in this time and age are not efficient. As earlier explained, there are numerous challenges causing stress in this transition period. Besides the emotional and psychological issues that one faces, they are expected to handle loads of school work that is highly stressful. Their distinct qualities determine their journey through college and how well they deal with stress. This generation has some positive habits including modesty, good conduct, achievement and teamwork. Their parents are well educated, ethnically and culturally and affluent which has positive impacts on their children. On the other hand, their parents tend to be over protective and they encounter difficulties while facing situations on their own. The current technology has impacted heavily on communication and this has posed problems to this generation as they constantly exposed to negative information which increases their stress levels. There are negative aspects that have an impact on stressors and coping systems. For instance, they are faced by high levels of pressure to academic excellence; they are heavily monitored and over scheduled. It is noted with keen interest that the millennial population do not have the necessary coping mechanisms to overcome stressors (Hellen et al. 365). Most of them have low stress tolerance therefore cannot sufficiently handle stressful situations. The article states that college years are the most stressful in an individual’s life caused by the academic, social and personal challenges (Hellen et al. 362). The essay asserts that there are special qualities that make it difficult for this generation to deal with stress. They are under much pressure to perform well in their studies and work within strict schedules. The article presents the findings got from a survey conducted in a random school and they confirm the arguments in the essay. Work Cited Bland, Helen W., Melton, Bridget F., Welle, Paul & Bigham, Lauren. “Stress Tolerance: New Challenges for Millennial College Students.” College Student Journal 46. 2 (2012): 362- 375. Read More