Educational Psychology Review, VoL 5, No.

2, 1993

Stress in School-Aged Children and Youth

Kenneth B. Matheny, 1,2 David W. Aycock, 1
and Christopher J. McCarthy 1

This article reviews the literature on stress in students of grades 1-12. A model
to understand stress as the inequality between perceived demands and perceived
resources is presented. Student stressors are identified in the family and school
environments. Coping with these stressors is c o n c e p t u a l i z e d as
problem-focused, emotion-focused, or appraisal-focused strategies that make
use of personal, social, and cognitive resources. Physical, emotional, and
behavioral symptoms of ineffectual coping efforts are then identified. After
gender differences in stressors and coping are noted, instruments measuring
stressors, coping strategies, and coping resources in children and youth are
reviewed. Finally, representative intervention programs developed for
school-aged youth are described and evidence of their efficacy is presented.
The article concludes that there is a paucity of research on stress in children
as compared to research on stress in adults.
KEY WORDS: student stressors; student coping; stress measurement; stress-intervention
programs.

INTRODUCTION

Although the link between psychosocial stress and illness has been
found in children as well as adults (Boyce and Jemerin, 1990), studies of
stress in childhood and adolescence are inexcusably scarce compared to
the enormous body of research regarding stress in adults (Price, Jurs, Jurs,
Rhonehouse, and Isham, 1985). The entire contents of this journal issue,
however, strongly document the exorbitant toll exacted from students by

1Counseling and Psychological Services, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia.

2Correspondence should be directed to Kenneth B. Matheny, Department of Counseling and
Psychological Services, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia 30303.

109

1040-726X/93/0600-0109507,00/0© 1993PlenumPublishingCorporation
110 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

stressors. Stress significantly impacts all of the topics of this issue. It is a

contributing factor to some (health problems, violence, and suicide) and
symptom of others (teenage pregnancy, physical and sexual abuse, parental
separation and divorce, and fear of AIDS).
Stress contributes markedly to academic failure. Academic stress has
been referred to as the "invisible disability" (Hill and Sarason, 1966). It is
estimated to interfere seriously with the academic performance of an alarm-
ing 6-10 million children a year (Barker, 1987). Stress interferes with aca-
demic performance by diverting attention from subtle cognitive tasks to
worry and feelings of being overwhelmed.
Underscoring the impact of stress on young people, Green (1984) re-
ports that adolescents comprise the only age group for which fatality rates
are on the increase. The incidence of adolescent suicide, homicide, and
unwanted pregnancy have been on the rise for an entire generation (Basch
and Kersch, 1986).
This article reviews the nature, sources, symptoms, and treatments of
stress in children and youth, with particular attention being directed to the
school setting. First, the article's major constructs are defined along with
a stress model to hold these constructs together. Second, the more common
stressors encountered by students (the term used hereafter to refer to chil-
dren and youth) are identified along with resources that students use in
successfully coping with them. Third, symptoms of chronic stress in students
are reviewed. Fourth, instruments used in assessing the stressors and coping
resources of students are discussed; and, last, promising interventions for
lessening stress vulnerability are presented.

DEFINITIONS

Because stressology is a relatively new science, its terms often are used
imprecisely by the public and differently from authority to authority. The
following definitions will govern the use of key terms throughout this article.
Stress will be used synonymously with the stress response. It refers to
the body's physiological and psychological adjustments to stressors and is
consistent with Selye's (1956) use of the term. Demands refer to require-
ments imposed on students either by themselves or others. Coping resources
refer to physical, social, and psychological assets that are useful in dealing
with demands. Stressors refer to a wide array of situations, events, and
thoughts that trigger the stress response. They usually stem from demands
that are perceived to overextend one's resources. Symptoms refer to negative
physical and emotional outcomes from experiencing the stress response.
Student Stress 111

STRESS MODEL

Modem theories view stress as the inequality between perceived de-

mands and perceived resources (Cox, 1978; French, Rodgers, and Cobb,
1974; Lazarus, 1966; Lazarus, Kanner, and Folkman, 1980; Lazarus and
Launier, 1978; Mason, 1975; Matheny, Aycock, Pugh, Curlette, and Can-
nella, 1986). The stress model presented in Fig. 1 depicts the critical role
of appraisal in turning demands into stressors.
The process begins with demands that may stem from self-require-
ments, life changes, role requirements, or hassles. In a few cases, these
demands represent conditioned experiences, such as phobias, which trigger
the stress response without conscious awareness. Ordinarily, however, in-
Demands

Aw ness ~

.{
esources

Stress esponse Healthy

S!m Functioning

Stress ptoms
Fig. 1. Stress model. This is a revision of a graphic constructed
by Matheny et aL (Adapted with permission).
112 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

dividuals become aware of these demands, and the awareness is followed

by appraisal of their severity and importance (primary appraisal) and the
adequacy of one's resources for coping with them (secondary appraisal)
(Lazarus and Folkman, 1984). If one's resources seem adequate for coping
with the demands, the demands are viewed as challenges and are dealt
with in a healthy fashion.
The secret for healthy functioning is to achieve a match between per-
ceived demands and resources. Demands that seem too great for one's re-
sources become stressors and trigger the stress response which, in turn,
leads to stress symptoms. If demands, on the other hand, are perceived as
too weak to be challenging, one is likely to experience the stress of bore-
dom. Whether a demand is viewed stressfully or not depends, then, upon
the perceived adequacy of one's resources.
When demands and resources are perceived to be matched properly,
one is likely to experienced a sense of control over the situation. This
sense of control appears to protect the person from stress-related illness.
Research in psychoimmunology suggests that only stressors that are per-
ceived to be uncontrollable suppress immune functioning (Antoni, 1987;
Matheny and Cupp, 1983; McCabe and Schneiderman, 1985). Students
have less control over their worlds than adults. Their coping resources are
less well developed, and their homes, schools, and communities are run
by adults who, because of their greater coping resources, often underes-
timate the terrors of growing up. The key is perception: the student's per-
ception, not that of the parents, teachers, or counselors. In the next
section, demands that are likely to be perceived by students as stressors
are discussed.

SOURCES OF STUDENT STRESS

Some researchers have attempted to categorize stressors for stu-

dents. For example, Elkind (1986) divides sources of stress into three cate-
gories: (a) foreseeable and avoidable stress (e.g., drug use and breaking
the law), unforeseeable and unavoidable (e.g., illness and death), and (c)
foreseeable but unavoidable (e.g., classroom tests and dental appoint-
ments). Failure to cope with these stressors results in different emotional
symptoms for each category (anxiety, depression, and anger, respectively).
Elkind contends that the determination of emotional symptoms experi-
enced by students should help the professional identify the stressors that
cause them.
Farrell, Peguero, Lindsey, and White (1988) categorized the stressors
of high school students at risk for dropping out of school into sexual, fa-
Student Stress 113

milial, peer and street culture, and occupational areas. They found that
the most often mentioned negative factors among these students were from
peer pressure outside the school (for example, pressure to use drugs and
to skip school). These students also reported a great deal of boredom with
school itself.

Family Stressors

Stressful events within the family have been shown to impact students
negatively. Children 7-14 who have a younger, disabled sibling scored more
poorly on some adjustment measures than same-aged children without dis-
abled siblings (Gamble and McHale, 1989). Patterson and McCubbin
(1983) found that a pile-up of family life changes was associated with a
decline in pulmonary functioning in children with cystic fibrosis.
Thomas and Groer (1986) found that high school freshman students
from rural, suburban, and urban schools all included "hassles with parents
and siblings" among their most stressful events. The three most stressful
life events for junior high school students in a study by Price et al. (1985)
were, in order, "arguments with parents," "not having enough money," and
"being treated like a child." Roosa, Gensheimer, Short, Ayers, and Shell
(1989) cited evidence that approximately 7 million U.S. chiidren, or 10%
of those under 18, live with one or more alcoholic parents. These conditions
are likely to be highly stressful to children and adolescents.
Parental marital status has also been studied for its stressful effects
on students. Each year, divorce separates one million children from one
of their parents, and currently 14 million children under the age of 18 have
divorced parents (Prokop, 1990). Contrary to common expectations, Wil-
liams and Compas (1988) found no differences in the reported emotional
problems and stressful events in adolescents from single and first-time mar-
ried mothers. However, adolescents living in homes with stepparents list
discipline, absence of their biological parents, feeling misunderstood by
their stepparents, and divided loyalties as negative events that they expe-
rience (Strother and Jacobs, 1984).
Research dealing with the relationship between the family's financial
status and children's stress has produced mixed results. In a study of eighth
graders Bird and Kemerait (1990) found no differences in the stress re-
ported by adolescents in families with both parents working or in families
where only one parent worked outside the home. However, Clark-Lempers,
Lempers, and Netusil (1990) found that family financial stress was related
to adolescent self-reports of depression.
114 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

School Stressors

Numerous studies have investigated stressors that are specific to the

school environment itself. Most educators readily acknowledge stressors such
as class size, high teacher-to-student ratios, and crime in the school. Dickey
and Henderson (1989) found the top four stressors reported by 141 children
in kindergarten, first, and third grades to be school work, peer relationships,
personal injury or loss, and loss of personal comfort, space, or time.
Phillips (1978) found that the response of 4th and 5th grade students
to potential school stressors seemed to fall into two categories: (a) aca-
demic stressors related to subject matter mastery and performance evalu-
ation, and (b) social stressors related to interactions with peers and teachers
and participation in classroom activities. A factor-analytic study of their
responses, however, identified four school anxiety factors: rejection by oth-
ers, examinations, high expectations of others, and sensations associated
with the stress response itself. Sieman (1978) also found unmet expectations
of parents and teachers to be a major school stressor, along with frustration,
change, and competition.
Other researchers have identified a variety of specific factors that may
contribute to student stress. For example, low self-concept seems to be both
a cause of poor academic performance as well as a result of the same
(Davidson and Lang, 1960; Sieman, 1978). School events such as being cho-
sen last for a team, not knowing answers to teacher questions, or being in
a low reading group are readily acknowledged stressors by children as well
(Schultz, 1980). Other stressors mentioned by researchers include over-
crowded classrooms, violence, peer pressure, disruptive behavior of other
students, poor teachers, boring curricula, long days (day care after school),
competition for grades and social status, and stage fright (Arent, 1985;
Kersey, 1986; Youngs, 1985).
Sigel (1987) warned of the stressfulness of "hothousing" children,
which requires them to learn subject matter usually gained at a later de-
velopmental level. Sigel points out that such an emphasis runs the risk of
de-emphasizing personal and social developmental concerns such as focus-
ing on feelings and relating to others. Burts, Hart, Charlesworth, and Kirk
(1990)' studied 37 kindergarten children, 20 of whom were in developmen-
tally appropriate classrooms and 17 who were "hothoused." It was found
that "hothoused" children displayed more stress behaviors as measured by
the Child Stress Behavior Instrument (CCSBI).
On the positive side of the ledger, schools may serve as buffers against
stress experienced by students in other settings. Rutter (cited in Honig,
1986) studied 90 girls who spent much of their childhood in institutions.
One third of these girls were able to function well in adulthood, and when
Student Stress 115

asked to what they credited their good adjustment, they mentioned their
school experiences as a protective factor.

Gender and Geographical Differences in Stressors

Thomas and Groer (1986) found gender differences in the lifestyle

features associated with stress. Girls were more likely to report stress from
relationships and dissatisfaction with their personal appearances, whereas
boys were more likely to be stressed by failing grades and unsatisfactory
vocational adjustment. Basch and Kersch (1986) found that girls tended to
rate events as more stressful than did boys, and Price et al. (1985) found
girls both to have higher life events scores and to be more upset by them.
Cohen, Burt, and Bjorck (1987) found that positive events were stress buf-
fering for girls, but not for boys. This finding is interesting in the light of
research that found that uplifts (Kanner, Coyne, Schaefer, and Lazarus,
1981) and positive events (Matheny and Cupp, 1983) were actually associ-
ated with greater rather than lesser illness for adult females, whereas posi-
tive events were associated with lesser illness for adult males.
Pryor-Brown, Cowen, Hightower, and Lotyczewski (1986) evaluated
the frequency and perceived upsettingness with which 22 stressful life
events occurred in 503 fourth- through sixth-grade school children. Girls
judged these events to be more upsetting than boys, although there were
few differences in the frequency with which these events were experienced.
Urban children had more stressful life events than did suburban children,
and they judged them to be more upsetting.
In summary, students experience a wide range of stressors originating
in the family and the school. Interpersonal stressors are particularly stress-
ful to students whether they arise from parents, siblings, teachers, or fellow
students. Meeting the expectations of others also tends to be a pervasive
stressor for students; indeed, Bird and Kemerait (1990) identified the strain
of living up to expectations in their roles as students, family members, and
peers as the greatest stressor for adolescents. Although research devoted
to gender differences in stressors is scanty, it suggests that girls attribute
more of their stress to relationship strain, report more life demands, and
rate them more seriously than do boys.

STUDENT COPING

Research regarding student coping is directed both to coping strate-

gies and to coping resources. Resources are traits, abilities, and assets, both
116 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

human and material, which students can use in coping with demands. Cop-
ing strategies are ways students use these resources in coping. Again, the
amount of research directed to these concerns of students is markedly less
than that devoted to the concerns of adults (more evidence perhaps that
adults underestimate the stressful nature of childhood and youth).

Coping Strategies

Folkman and Lazarus (1980) maintained that coping strategies largely

could be categorized as either problem focused or emotion focused. Prob-
lem-focused coping was defined as efforts to remove or reduce demands
and/or to increase resources for managing them. Emotion-focused coping
was defined as efforts to regulate emotional states that are associated with
stressful events. Moos and Billings (1982) added a third strategy, appraisal
focused, which is directed at redefining demands so as to make them less
stressful.
Maddi (1981) categorized coping as either avoidant or transforma-
tional, with each involving forms of cognitive appraisal and action. Avoidant
coping involves pessimistic appraisal and evasive actions which demonstrate
an unwillingness to deal with the stressor. Avoidant strategies may create
additional stress for students, such as when they run away from home to
avoid difficulties with parents or when they use drugs as ways of relaxing.
Transformational coping involves optimistic appraisal and deliberate action
to eliminate or modify events producing the stress.
Compas, Malcarne, and Fondacaro (1988) found evidence for the use-
fulness of the Folkman and Lazarus categorization schema with sixth-
through eighth-grade students. Students were relatively consistent across
time in the generation and use of problem- and emotion-focused coping
when confronting social and academic stressors. Emotion-focused coping
increased as a function of grade, with eighth graders generating more emo-
tion-focused alternatives than sixth and seventh graders. On the other hand,
problem-focused alternatives decreased over the grades. This trend seems
unfortunate because emotion-focused coping was found to be positively
correlated with emotional/behavioral problems and because problem-fo-
cused coping was negatively correlated with these problems.
Consistent with studies on adults, students in the Compas et al. (1988)
study generated more problem-focused alternatives for stressors they per-
ceived to be controllable than for those perceived to be uncontrollable.
Altshuler and Ruble (1989) obtained similar results in their study of the
methods used by children 5-12 years of age in coping with uncontrollable
stressors. With uncontrollable stressors, these children used avoidance tech-
Student Stress 117

niques aimed at alleviating emotional distress, rather than problem-solving

techniques focused on changing the situation.
Students in the Compas et al. (1988) study reported more behavior
problems when they experienced a mismatch between perceived control of
the stressor and the number of coping alternatives they generated; that is,
they experienced more behavior problems when they generated (a) many
problem-focused alternatives for stressors they believed to be uncon-
trollable, or (b) few problem-focused alternatives for stressors they believed
to be controllable. Perhaps either approach would elicit self-reproach from
students. In the first case, they might frustrate themselves by taking inap-
propriate action on stressors believed to be uncontrollable; and in the sec-
ond case, they might fault themselves for not actively dealing with stressors
they believed to be controllable.
Other studies of student coping strategies support Moriarty and Tous-
sieng's (1976) conclusion that, contrary to the unidimensional coping strate-
gies suggested by Folkman and Lazarus (1980), all coping involves both
problem-focused and emotion-focused efforts. In factor-analytic studies
used in the construction of an instrument for measuring adolescent coping,
Patterson and McCubbin (1987) found support for Moriarty and Tous-
sieng's conclusion. Although the 12-factored coping patterns of adolescents
seemed to somewhat favor emotion-focused coping over appraisal-focused
or problem-focused coping, most of the patterns addressed more than one
of these strategies.
Patterson and McCubbin's pattems broke out somewhat more cleanly
into Maddi's (1981) avoidant and transformation strategies than into Folkman
and Lazarus's categories. Four of the 12 coping patterns appeared to be
avoidant (ventilating feelings, seeking diversions, avoiding problems, and re-
laxing), whereas the remaining eight (developing self-reliance and optimism,
developing social support, solving family problems, seeking spiritual support,
investing in close friends, seeking professional support, engaging in demand-
ing activity, and being humorous) appeared more transformational in nature.
Patterson and McCubbin (1987) found 3 of the 12 coping patterns
to be positively related to greater adolescent substance abuse: ventilating
feelings, investing in close friends, and developing social support. Three
different coping patterns were negatively related to substance use: solving
family problems, seeking spiritual support, and engaging in demanding ac-
tivity. Patterson and McCubbin suggest that substance abuse for adoles-
cents, in contrast to adults, may not serve primarily as an emotion-focused
coping behavior for reducing stress but rather as a problem-focused strategy
aimed at accomplishing a developmental task: separating oneself from the
family and developing a "fit" within a peer group.
118 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

Because substance abuse is generally frowned upon by parents, it be-

comes a natural behavior around which to distance oneself from parents
in favor of peer group alliance. Ventilating feelings, investing in close
friends, and developing social (peer) support all would then understandably
relate to this effort. One might surmise that the more difficult parents make
it for teenagers to become their own persons, the more likely they may be
to adopt drug usage as a means of accomplishing individuation.
Only a few studies were found that investigated gender differences in
coping strategies. However, one important finding is that girls use a broader
range of coping patterns than do boys (Patterson and McCubbin, 1987).
Furthermore, girls are more likely to cope by using interpersonal relation-
ships with friends, siblings, parents, and other adults. Donohue and Gullotta
(1983) likewise found that girls more frequently than boys cope by "estab-
lishing supportive relationships and friendships." Patterson and McCubbin
speculate that the greater use of relationships in coping may reflect differ-
ential socialization that encourages more affiliative behavior for girls.

Coping Resources

Several studies have identified certain resources that seem to help

students cope with stress. Among those identified were social support, so-
cial skills, problem-solving orientation, positive automatic thoughts, and
self-esteem and personal control.
Social Support. Compas (1987) reports that there is strong evidence
for an inverse relationship between social support and levels of psychologi-
cal or physical symptomatology in children and adolescents. Although Pat-
terson and McCubbin (1987) found that the adolescent-coping strategy
aimed at increasing peer support was related to greater substance abuse,
most studies find social support, whether from family or peers, to be an
important stress-coping resource. For example, Aptekar (1988) found Co-
lumbian street children ranging in age from 7 to 16 have adequate mental
health, a surprising outcome given reports of these children from the Co-
lumbian press. Aptekar identified two reasons for this phenomenon: The
children had older benefactors who looked out for them and, by age 10-12,
they had developed intense peer friendships or chums (similar to Sullivan's
concept of "chumship").
Rutter's (1979) study of children who lived in discordant, unhappy
homes illustrates the importance of children having a good relationship
with at least one of their parents. In Rutter's study, only 25% of children
having a good relationship with at least one parent showed conduct disor-
ders, whereas 75% of those without such a relationship showed conduct
Student Stress 119

disorders. Garmezy (1983) illustrated the crucial role that superior foster-
home placement plays in improving the adjustment of children subjected
to the trauma of actual war conditions.
Social Skills. Werner (1984) cites the ability to gain positive attention
from others (for example by getting good grades or by keeping one's room
clean) as a factor common to children who are resistant to stress. In a
study of 698 multiracial children born on the island of Kauai, Hawaii,
Werner (1989) found that those who successfully coped through childhood
and young adulthood had three protective factors: a sociable disposition
accompanied by competent communication skills and average or better in-
telligence; emotional support from the family; and support from external
agencies such as school or church that reward the student's competencies
and determination and/or provide a belief system by which to live.
Peters (1988) cited recent research in developmental psychology that
highlights the importance of social competence for the successful adjustment
of children and adolescents. Social competence for Peters included the abil-
ity to communicate with others, being sensitive to others' needs, being as-
sertive, and being able to identify the emotions of oneself and others.
Werner (1986) found that social skills seemed especially important in
shielding a subset of the Kauai children, who were the biological children
of alcoholics, from serious coping problems through the age of 18. Tem-
perament factors and communication skills were also important buffers
against stress for this subset of children.
Problem-Solving Orientation. Elias, Gara, Rothbaum, Reese, and
Ubriaco (1987) studied 38 6th-grade children who were divided into four
groups: emotionally disturbed, average learners, students with developmen-
tal learning delays, and children who excelled academically. Children who
were better adjusted socially were distinguished from poorly adjusted chil-
dren by their superior problem-solving abilities. Problem solving was defined
as the ability to understand a situation, define potential problems, articulate
goals, and develop problem-resolution strategies.
Compas (1987) listed interpersonal cognitive problem solving as a
stress-coping resource for children. This resource requires the application
of basic problem-solving skills to interpersonal situations. Peters (1988) in-
dicated that cognitive problem-solving skills are part of the make-up of a
mentally healthy child. He maintains that these cognitive problem-solving
skills in childhood involve identifying problems, setting goals, and adopting
strategies for attaining goals; whereas in young adolescence these skills take
the form of critical thinking, decision-making, and accepting responsibility
for one's actions. Werner (1984) listed one of the factors common to re-
silient children as "an active, evocative approach towards solving life's prob-
lems" (p. 69).
120 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

Positive Automatic Thoughts. Experiencing positive thoughts when

confronting potential stressors would appear to facilitate problem solving.
Deal and Williams (1988) found support for this assumption in their study
of the mediating role of cognitions on depression among high school youth.
Negative cognitions were better predictors of depression than was the num-
ber or judged seriousness of life events experienced by these youth. Among
measures of negative cognitions, immediate negative thoughts (self-talk)
were more predictive of depression than were measures of irrational beliefs
or dysfunctional attitudes. This study underscores the value of teaching stu-
dents to forego the natural tendency to disparage their coping resources
or to exaggerate the seriousness of the stressor and to instead make more
objective readings of the stressor.
Self-Esteem and Control. Compas (1987) maintains that self-esteem
and an internal locus of control are vital in making children more resilient
to stress. Children who attributed academic success to constant, internal
determinants and failure to changeable factors were better equipped to
cope than were those who attributed success to changeable, external factors
and failure to unchangeable factors. Werner (1986) found differences in
self-concept and locus of control to be important in discriminating children
of alcoholics who developed serious coping problems by the age of 18 from
those who did not.
Depressed children treated in an outpatient setting were found to be
more likely than non-depressed children to perceive themselves as incom-
petent in performing their daily tasks (Weiss, Weiss, Wasserman, and Rin-
toul, 1987). In a study of 78 subjects aged 8-17 years who were brought
to a public mental health agency, Weiss (1986) found control-related beliefs
about behavior to be useful in predicting psychotherapy outcome. Control
in this study related to the particular behavior domain in question and not
to a general sense of universal control. Thus, the control that was predictive
of successful psychotherapy outcomes was more like Bandura's (1977) spe-
cific self-efficacy than like the global kind of control referred to in Beck's
(1976) triad of depressive cognitions, e.g., the belief that one would be able
to successfully do one's homework vs. the belief that one will be able to
meet one's needs in the world.
Penny, Gillian, and Robinson (1986) studied the association between
smoking and important psychological dimensions in 1225 adolescents from
two secondary schools in an urban area of South Wales. Greater external
locus of control, lower self-esteem, and fewer coping resources were found
among the smoking than the nonsmoking youth. The results suggest that
smoking is used to cope with the stress and that youth with fewer coping
resources are more likely to smoke.
Student Stress 121

Resources of Pre-Schoolers. Compas (1987) identified seven lines of

research regarding the stress coping of children and adolescents. The first
line of research studied attachment and separation in infants. He noted
great variation in the ways infants responded to maternal separation. Com-
pas pointed out that it is unclear whether behavior in this area actually
reflects coping or just predisposed patterns of responding.
Compas (1987) reported that temperament ratings of 3- and 4-year-
olds are predictive of Type A behavior 20 years later. Wolf, Sklov, Wenzl,
Hunter, and Berenson (1982) had earlier found Type A behavior patterns
among 5th- and 6th-grade children. Compas described a continuum of sen-
sitivity to threats in the environment ranging from being oblivious to being
hypersensitive. Children who coped poorly fell at the extremes of the con-
tinuum, whereas resilient children fell in the middle. It would seem likely
that students who were oblivious to threats would cope poorly because of
failure to prepare adequately for the stressor and that the coping of stu-
dents who were hypersensitive to threat would suffer from cognitive inter-
ference due to over arousal.
In summary, many coping strategies and coping resources of students
have been identified in the literature. Although coping strategies are cate-
gorized differently, it seems that students often use a combination of strate-
gies simultaneously to attack the stressor and to deal with their emotional
responses to it. Coping resources for which there is research support in-
clude social support from family, friends, and peers; social skills such as
communication skills and assertiveness; problem-solving skills; positive
thinking (particularly self-talk when confronting the stressor); self-esteem;
and a sense of control.

STRESS SYMPTOMS AMONG STUDENTS

In a factor-analytic study of stress symptoms among elementary school

students (Matheny et aL, 1990), three categories of symptoms emerged: dis-
ruptive behavior, work-study difficulties, and emotional-social-cognitive dif-
ficulties. Disruptive behavior includes classroom misbehavior, social
misbehavior, and cognitive processes such as blame externalization that fuel
these behaviors. Work-Study difficulties include mismanagement of time
and energy (e.g., turning work in late, failing to finish assignments) and
the lack of motivation to learn. Emotional-social-cognitive difficulties tap
dysphoric feelings such as depression and fear, dysfunctional thinking pat-
terns that contribute to problems such as oversensitivity and self-esteem
deficits, and interpersonal concerns such as lack of friendships.
122 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

Behavioral and emotional symptoms of stress in students have also

received attention. Helms and Gable (1990) cited fear, shyness, and lone-
liness as emotional symptoms and talking back to teachers and hurting oth-
ers as behavioral symptoms. Sieman (1978) reported that children who
faced demands that outdistanced their coping resources experienced a
sense of hopelessness and insecurity.
Other stress symptoms that have been identified in the literature in-
dude physical symptoms such as chronic sleeplessness, headaches, stom-
achaches, and acute panic symptoms such as flushing, sweating, and shallow
breathing. Because children are too young to experience the devastating
effects of long-term stress on degenerative diseases, attention is usually fo-
cused on the role of stress in compromising the immune system, thus mak-
ing stressed students more susceptible to conditions such as colds and flu.
Additional emotional symptoms include depression, agitation, irritability,
and fear; and additional behavioral symptoms include attention and con-
centration deficits, impulsive behaviors, regression to immature behavior,
and social withdrawal (Brenner, 1984; Helms and Gable, 1990).

THE MEASUREMENT OF STRESSORS AND COPING

There is a scarcity of instruments with good psychometrics for the

measurement of student stressors and coping resources. Stress measures
have largely been directed to an adult population. What follows is a dis-
cussion of some of the more promising of these instruments for measuring
stress-related factors among students.

Measuring Stressors

Certain researchers have attempted to catalog stressful experiences

in the lives of children and youth. Some studies have attempted to identify
potential stressors broadly in the child's life, whereas others limit them-
selves to stressors within the school.
Clustering Life Events as Stressors. Instruments for measuring stressful
life events of students have followed the pioneering work of Holmes and
Rahe (1967). They measured the potential stressfulness of life ~vents by
their number and severity. They assumed that the clustering of life events
would drain the energy available for adapting and would directly relate to
experienced stress and illness. No significant moderating role was accorded
the subject's perception of the desirability of the life event.
Student Stress 123

Coddington (1972a,b) has perhaps done more research on the stress-

ful life events of students than has any other researcher. Following the
model of Holmes and Rahe, he surveyed normal populations of preschool,
elementary, junior-high, and high-school children as well as childcare pro-
fessionals in order to develop life events scales for these student groups.
Identified stressors were somewhat age-graded and related to the develop-
mental issues faced by these student groups. For preschool and elementary
students, the death, divorce, and marital separation of parents were rated
as the most stressful life events. For junior- and senior-high students, unwed
pregnancy, getting married, and acquiring a visible deformity joined paren-
tal losses as the most stressful events.
Coddington found older children to experience a greater number of
life events, indicating that expansion of the social sphere results in a greater
number of both positive and negative experiences. He found no social class
or racial differences in the prevalence of life events experienced by students.
Research by Basch and Kersch (1986) confirmed the earlier results
of Coddington in concluding that the death or divorce of parents was
judged as being the most stressful life event for the 6th, 7th, and 8th grad-
ers. In addition, the death of siblings and close friends, alcohol and drug
use, and arrests were also named in the most stressful category. Dise-Lewis
(1988) created the Life Events and Coping Inventory for 12- to 14-year-old
children and once again found that parental death and divorce were the
most significant life stressors followed by misbehaviors leading to arrest or
suspension from school.
International studies of life event stress have also appeared in the
literature. Y a m a m o t o and colleagues (Yamamoto and Byrnes, 1984;
Yamamoto, Soliman, Parsons, and Davies, 1987) have compared the inci-
dence and perception of stressful life events across cultures and found a
high degree of agreement among 3rd-9th graders in both stress ratings and
the incidence of life events, prompting them to hypothesize a common "cul-
ture of childhood." The most significant life stressors rated by these chil-
dren were losing a parent, going blind, being academically retained, wetting
in class, and witnessing fights between parents.
Using a Life Events Inventory for British children based on the rat-
ings of professional childcare workers, Monaghan, Robinson, and Dodge
(1979) found parental behaviors again to be the most significant stressors.
The critical importance of parents as buffers against student stress is high-
lighted by all of these studies.
Cohen et al. (1987) have criticized the life-events measurement tech-
nique, reporting that it fails to predict change in mental health symptoms
such as adolescent depression, anxiety, and self-esteem. In addition, they
found that parental negative events did not significantly influence adolescent
124 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

symptoms. In contrast, a longitudinal study by Compas, Howell, Phares, Wil-

liams, and Giunta (1989) found a significant relationship between the psy-
chological symptoms of 10- to 15-year-olds and stressful life events
experienced either by themselves or their fathers (but not their mothers).
School Experiences as Stressors. Many of the life-events scales for stu-
dents include stressful school experiences. The Coping Resources Inventory
for Stress in School-Aged Youth (CRISSY), discussed more fully below,
measures stressors within the school as well as other segments of the stu-
dent's environment.
The School Situation Survey developed by Helms and Gable (1989)
for grades 3-12 has four scales assessing sources of school-related stress:
(a) students' perceptions of their teachers' attitudes toward them, (b) aca-
demic performance, (c) peer interactions, and (d) self-concept. Coefficient
alphas for the scales range from .68 to .78 on a sample of 7036 students
in grades 3-12. Test-retest reliabilities for a sample of 621 7th-9th grade
students ranged from .62 to .71 over a 3-week period. Content validity was
established through the use of expert judges; construct validity through fac-
tor analysis and path analyses; and convergent validity through correlations
with other tests measuring childhood stressors.
In summary, various studies of children demonstrate a similarity in
effects of life events across racial, ethnic, and socioeconomical lines; how-
ever, gender appears to be a significant variable. Girls are more aware of
life events than are boys and tend to rate them as being more serious. Two
themes seem to run through the most stressful life events for students:
events that threaten the physical and/or psychological security of students
and events that threaten their social esteem. The fact that parental death
and marital problems were consistently among the most stressful life events
for children attests the strength of their needs for security. The importance
of social esteem is more pronounced in adolescents than in pre-adolescents,
inasmuch as adolescents consistently report that their relationships with
peers and the need to meet societal requirements, in addition to familial
stressors, comprise the most significant life stressors.

Measuring Coping Resources

The CRISSY (Matheny et al. 1989) is an instrument that measures

student stressors, coping resources, and stress symptoms in elementary and
junior-high school students. Four categories of stressors are measured:
school environment (e.g., "My classroom is too crowded"), social environ-
ment (e.g., "Other kids tease me"), family environment (e.g., "I live with
only one of my parents"), and personal environment (e.g., "I have scary
Student Stress 125

dreams"). Coping resources measured are family support, peer support,

emotional health, study skills, behavior control, and social ease. Categories
of stress symptoms measured by the student's teacher/counselor are dis-
ruptive behavior (e.g., "breaks the rules"), work/study difficulties (e.g., "un-
willing to go back over work"), and emotional-social-cognitive difficulties
(e.g., "appears depressed"). The reading level of the CRISSY is roughly
the second grade, and it can be administered by teachers during a 50-min-
ute classroom period. Internal consistency reliabilities for the scales range
from .82 to .92. Items were selected based on seven factor analyses and on
their correlations with teacher ratings of student stress symptoms, academic
achievement scores, and measures of anxiety and internal locus of control.

Measuring Coping Strategies

The Adolescent Coping Orientation for Problem Experiences (A-

COPE) measures the coping strategies for high-school youth (Patterson and
McCubbin, 1987). The instrument seems firmly grounded in developmental
psychology and individual-and-family stress theory. Its coping strategies
were factor analytically derived, and it appears to be useful in identifying
student coping patterns that are related to substance abuse. The 12 coping
strategies include ventilating feelings, seeking diversions, developing self-
reliance, developing social support, solving family problems, avoiding prob-
lems, seeking spiritual support, investing in close friends, seeking
professional support, engaging in demanding activity, being humorous, and
relaxing. The coefficient alpha reliabilities for the scales range from .50 to
.76. The coping strategies were validated through comparisons with ado-
lescents' self-reported use of cigarettes, liquor, and marijuana in a longi-
tudinal study of 505 families with adolescents.
Descriptive data indicate a gender difference in coping strategies. Fe-
male students have higher scores than males on developing social support,
solving family problems, investing in close friends, and developing self-re-
liance. The first three of these strategies involve relationships as ways of
coping. Many studies have found adult females also use relationships as
coping strategies more frequently than do adult males.

PROMISING INTERVENTIONS

Although there is evidence that reducing stress significantly improves

reading, arithmetic, spelling (Frey, 1980), and the attentional skills of chil-
dren (Omizo and Michael, 1982), Rubenzer (1987) noted that stress-man-
126 Matheny, Aycock,and McCarthy

agement programs in the schools were virtually nonexistent. A comprehen-

sive approach to stress reduction in the schools would attempt to render
the school environment less stressful and to increase students' resistance
to stress. With one notable exception (Conners, 1983), wherein changes in
the physical structure of the school building were recommended to alleviate
stress for students and teachers (such as improving light levels and acoustic
qualities, properly regulating the temperature, and color coding the build-
ing to help students to find their way around more easily), the stress in-
tervention programs reviewed largely focused on fortifying the student to
deal with stressors more effectively.
Forman and O'Malley (1984) reviewed behavioral and cognitive-be-
havioral stress-management interventions for the management of school-
related stress. They recommended that certain techniques typically used
with adults, such as Meichenbaum's stress inoculation and Ellis' approach
to the identification and change of an irrational thought, be used to help
children cope with the stress of achievement pressures and social adjust-
ment.
A variety of programs are available that are curriculum-based and
that can be integrated into the educator's daily planned activities on a more
or less ongoing basis. Elias (1989) recommended programs that highlight
social skills and critical thought as means of lessening student stress, and
Honig (1986) recommended the following teacher behaviors to reduce
stress in the classroom: (a) enhancing self-esteem as much as possible,
through encouragement, warm personal regard, care, and focused atten-
tion; (b) helping children acknowledge feelings and encouraging them to
engage in verbal communication; (c) anticipating stressful situations, such
as transition times, and planning ways to make them run smoother; (d)
using humor whenever possible to reframe negative thoughts and feelings;
(e) having regular classroom talks about different stressors; (f) making use
of such items as books and art to help children learn about and cope with
stress; and (g) involving parents.
The following section is a summary of some stress-management in-
terventions that can be used in a school setting. Programs herein reviewed
are not meant to be exhaustive of the full scope of approaches in the lit-
erature, but merely representative.

Monitoring and Coping with Stressors

Schultz and Heuchert (1983) developed a program designed for chil-

dren in the upper elementary grades. The program is based on the assump-
tion that students can be taught to identify, predict, and manage stressful
Student Stress 127

situations. It is designed for the educational arena, and instructional guide-

lines are presented that are "organized, sequential, hierarchical, and de-
velopmental in nature" (p. 141). The program is designed to teach the
following adaptive coping skills.
1. Differentiation: Children are taught to recognize the contribution
of their thinking to the stressfulness of situations at home and in
the school.
2. Fidelity: Children are taught analytical skills for perceiving the
world as it is, rather than as how they think or fear it is.
3. Pacing: Children are taught to avoid overloads or underloads in
their work.
4. Expansion: Children are encouraged to expand their awareness
and to increase their feelings of mastery over their environment.
5. Integration: Children are assisted in combining the above
approaches and in making them a part of their behavioral
repertoire.
Although the program goals seem promising, no specific research base for
this intervention is mentioned by the authors.
Love (1981) has developed a program for high-school students that
helps them to recognize the sources of their distress and to practice effec-
tive coping techniques. Six lesson plans are presented that teachers can
teach over eight 50-minute class periods. Topics covered include defining
stress, recognizing stress symptoms, understanding how stress affects the
body, making lifestyle changes, and coping strategies. No data evaluating
the usefulness of the program were offered by the author.

Relaxation Training

Mathews and Justice (1983) have presented a stress-management

model for schools entitled Project Relaxation. The authors maintain that
relaxation is incompatible with anxiety, and that nature has equipped hu-
mans with homeostatic mechanisms, that if activated, will reduce the dis-
turbing consequences of anxiety. The relaxation procedures are to be taught
and practiced 15-20 minutes each day during the academic term. The pro-
gram uses three resource books that can be purchased for approximately
$150. Biofeedback from galvanic-skin-response units and wrist temperature
thermistors (costing roughly $50.00) is provided to students to encourage
their progress. The use of these materials is optional. The program can be
implemented by teachers, with perhaps a counselor to coordinate the pro-
ject. Inservice training of about 15 hours is required to complete this pro-
gram.
128 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

Mathews (1983) found the program to be effective in improving meas-

ures of self-concept, discipline, and achievement in 532 seventh-grade stu-
dents in ten private and public schools in South Carolina. Pre- and
post-measures were used to assess the effects of participating in relaxation
exercises for 15 minutes each day. A biofeedback measure of relaxation
was found to be significantly related to the number of weeks students spent
in the program.
Hiebert and Eby (1985) used a multifaceted approach to relaxation
training with high-school students in English classes. Students were taught
to monitor their stress through self-administered biofeedback procedures;
to use relaxation scripts involving progressive relaxation, self-hypnosis,
autogenic relaxation, and guided imagery; and to practice relaxation while
listening to audiotapes. Results indicated that these students experienced
significant reductions in state anxiety, trait anxiety, and a wide range of
stress-related symptoms.

Functional Thinking

Copple, Sigel, and Saunders (1979) presented a stress-management

program for young children that is designed to promote critical thinking,
decision-making, and social-affective understanding. The program has a
strong research base and uses a teacher-focus (i.e., specific guidelines for
the teacher are elaborated, and sample activities are suggested). The
teacher-child interaction is the focus of the curriculum, and materials are
used as adjuncts to the educational process.
Other programs also teach critical-thinking skills as buffers against
stress. Elias and Clabby (1989) presented a program designed to lower
stress through problem solving for elementary-school children and found
it to be associated with enhanced stress coping and improved academic
performance. Botvin and Eng (1982a,b) taught life-skills (including critical
thinking) to middle-school students (and found them to smoke significantly
less after training than a no-treatment control group). Shure and Spivak
(1974) trained preschool and early kindergarten children in functional
thinking, and the Judge Baker Clinic (1982) and Francescani (1982) con-
structed problem-solving programs for high school students. After carefully
reviewing these programs by Shure and Spivak (1974), the Judge Baker
Clinic, and Francescani (1982) Elias (1989) concluded that all three ap-
peared to be effective.
Jaret (1987) describes a six-session program for training children to
eliminate cognitive distortions in favor of more objective thinking when
confronting potential stressors. The first three sessions are devoted to build-
Student Stress 129

ing skills for appraising and attacking stressors, and the last three are de-
voted to the application of these skills. No evidence, however, is cited by
the author for the effectiveness of the program.

Social Skills

The social-skills program described by Cartledge and Milburn (1980)

is designed for individuals who are charged with teaching children and
youth to cooperate and communicate. This program may be used by parents
or clinicians, as well as by educators. The program is concerned with se-
lecting social skills to be taught to children, assessing and evaluating these
social skills, and teaching strategies for instructing students in these skills.
In summary, stress-management programs in the schools have mostly
been directed at student coping rather than at organizational changes that
would reduce student stressors. These programs largely aim to empower
students by teaching them physical- and cognitive-coping techniques. Some
are directed exclusively to relaxation training (e.g., breathing, muscle con-
trol, biofeedback, guided imagery, meditation, and yoga); others aim to pre-
vent stress (e.g., stress monitoring and wellness practices such as proper
diet, exercise, rest, and drug-free lifestyles); others encourage better use of
the student's resources (e.g., time management, goal setting, decision-mak-
ing, critical thinking); and still others teach mind-control procedures (e.g.,
cognitive restructuring and rescripting). Some programs have been estab-
lished as part of the health or social studies curriculum or as counselor-led
group sessions. Stress counseling is also offered on an individual basis. Al-
though there is limited evidence of the effectiveness of these programs,
the goals of such training seem reasonable and well-directed in the light
of stress theory.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION

Research directed at stress in school-aged children and youth is scanty

compared to research directed at stress in adults. Perhaps adults still grossly
underestimate the serious effects of stress on children and youth. Symptoms
of student stress show up in academic performance, physical and mental
health, and relationships. Student stressors largely originate in the family
and school. Whereas interpersonal strain and the expectations of significant
others seem particularly stressful throughout childhood and youth, some
stressors are more frequently associated with certain ages than with others.
130 Matheny, Aycock, and McCarthy

Coping resources for students include social support, social skills,

problem-solving skills, positive thinking, self-esteem, and a sense of control.
Coping efforts include problem-focused and emotion-focused strategies,
and it is alarming to note that emotion-focused strategies m a y increase over
the school years.
G e n d e r differences show up both in response to stressors and in cop-
ing strategies. Girls a p p e a r to be stressed m o r e often from relationship
difficulties and concerns about their personal appearances. Boys, on the
other hand, are more often stressed from fear of failing grades and from
concerns about vocational adjustment. Girls report m o r e life demands and
view t h e m m o r e seriously than do boys. Girls a p p e a r to use a b r o a d e r range
of coping strategies and to lean more heavily upon social support for coping
than do boys.
T h e r e are very few well-designed and well-validated p r o g r a m s for
treating student stress. Most of the intervention programs that do exist are
aimed at strengthening the student's resistance to stress rather than at ren-
dering school environments less stressful. The most prevalent themes of
these intervention programs are relaxation training, functional thinking, and
social skills.
This review suggests that childhood and youth are not the idyllic
stages that adults represent them to be. Family, school, and peers m a k e
heavy demands on the rudimentary resources of students. If we are to fully
garner our h u m a n resources, then greater attention should be directed to
the stressors, stress-coping, and stress symptoms of our children and youth.

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