Research shows that university students in general are at-risk for experiencing high levels of psychological distress, including symptoms of depression and anxiety (see, e.g., Browne et al., 2017; Larcombe et al., 2015). One explanation for elevated distress amongst university students is their exposure to unique demands at university – known as “stressors”. These stressors include heavy academic workloads, financial pressures, competitiveness amongst students, and study/work/life imbalance.
The Stress of Completing a Psychology Honours Degree
One stressor that is unique to only a few tertiary settings, is often referred to as a “make-or-break” period (Jarrad, 2019). That is, an academic stage where students are competing against one another to progress to the next educational phase, with academic performance used to discriminate against students (Cruwys et al., 2015). This happens for students who must sit competitive entrance exams (e.g., medicine), and also students completing psychology honours degrees.
Cruwys (2015, p. 372) refers to this period as an “educational bottleneck”
“An educational bottleneck occurs when students enter a phase of their training in which progression is highly competitive and determined by academic performance.”
In Australia, studying psychology is popular, and with the retirement of alternative pathways to becoming a psychologist, the only way to become registered as a psychologist is by completing a postgraduate degree in psychology. However, despite the increased need for psychological services in the community, there has been a decline in postgraduate training programs in psychology. Entry into postgraduate programmes has therefore become competitive, and research suggests that this pressure is having a detrimental effect on psychology honours student’s mental health.
Research with Australian Psychology Honours Students
To investigate the impact of passing through this educational bottleneck on student wellbeing, Cruwys (2015) conducted a study with 141 psychology fourth-year students from four Australian universities. Cruwys found that at the time of submitting their thesis, honours students experienced high levels of psychological distress and low wellbeing relative to student norms, with 49% scoring in the clinical range for depression.[1]
Similarly, in a study of 179 psychology honours students from nine Australian universities, Jarrad (2019) found depression, anxiety, and stress were elevated in the sample, when compared with other comparative reference groups. Jarrad’s research indicated that:
• 31% of students were considered moderately to extremely stressed;
• 36% were moderately to extremely anxious; and
• 26% were moderately to extremely depressed.
As you will all know, when reviewing studies, we can't treat these findings as necessarily reflecting reality. The above studies used convenience and/or non-random sampling with small samples relative to the total
population of psychology students. The prevalence figures for elevated stress and
mental health problems, therefore, should be interpreted cautiously. We cannot generalise these findings to all psychology honours students. HOWEVER, having passed through that educational bottleneck myself, and talked to many honours students over the past few years, it does appear that passing through this educational bottleneck puts a severe level of stress on students.
What Can I Do?
So many things!!!!
The most important thing you can do this year is make a concerted effort to take care of yourself and your mental health.
Not everyone who is exposed to stressors experiences distress. Whether or not we experience distress depends on how we appraise that stress, and the coping strategies and resources we put in place.
Managing stress is a skill.
Practice Self-Care
What is self-care? Purposely engaging in activities and practices that maintain and promote physical and mental health.
Establishing a self-care routine is what helps us to manage stress and prevent burnout.
To take care of yourself this year (and to set healthy habits for the years to come when you are practicing as a psychologist), here are 7 tips for self-care:
1. Exercise!!! Take regular breaks throughout the day and get moving! There is strong evidence that regular physical activity improves psychological wellbeing and can reduce the risk of mental health problems such as depression and anxiety. Exercising with other people may have even greater benefits for mental health. If you often feel stressed, starting a yoga practice may be particularly beneficial for you. Read more about this relationship here.
2. Focus on Nutrition. Yes, sometimes you need that pick me up chocolate bar at 3pm, BUT maintaining a healthy diet with lots of vegetables, fruits and whole grains, as well as few processed foods and added sugars, has a major contribution to good health – including mental health. Read more about this link here.
3. Sleeeeeep! We know that good sleep quality and regular sleep patterns are crucial to maintaining good mental health. Sleep helps improve memory, mood, creativity, and problem-solving skills, and to recover from both mental as well as physical exertion. Learn habits for getting a better night’s sleep here.
4. Mindfulness. Mindfulness is good for your health, happiness and wellbeing. Research shows that mindfulness can even have a positive effect on brain function. It is also a type of therapy that has been adapted for use in the treatment of depression, and it particularly effective in preventing depression relapses. To practice mindfulness, you do not have to go into a dark room and chant “omm” for 30 minutes to have a fruitful mindfulness session. Just a few minutes focusing on your breathing and your body can decrease cortisol and adrenaline levels and change your whole day. Try apps like Smiling Mind, Insight Timer, Calm, or Headspace.
5. Make time for people you care about. Social connections are one of the most important things you can do for your mental health. Time spent with the people who are most important to you has been repeatedly shown to benefit your wellbeing. In fact, it’s even thought to contribute to greater life expectancy. Hanging out with ‘your people’ lets you take time out, talk about what’s going on in life, and even vent or just have a good laugh. Make a list of the people you like hanging out with and schedule in your next catch up – virtual or real.
6. Schedule mood boosting breaks. This is the one I wish I knew from my studies!! When you are studying remember to take breaks and engage in activities that lift your mood. It might not necessarily be for a long time, it might be 5 minutes playing with a pet; or a quick youtube video that has always made you laugh; or a creative hobby that relaxes you; or getting out into your local garden. Why are mood boosting breaks so important? According to Fredrickson's (2004) broaden-and-build theory of positive emotions, positive emotions have three functions: 1) they can undo the effects of negative emotions; 2) they can help you to think more broadly; 3) they act to build personal resources, including adaptive coping strategies, such as problem-solving, positive reframing, and help seeking. What does that mean for you completing your thesis? It means if you are struggling to solve a problem related to your research (perhaps it's data analysis time!), the best thing you can do is to take a break and do something that lifts your mood (although watch out for procrastination!!!). After you have taken a break, come back to the problem, and you may find that it is easier to solve. If the answer still hasn’t come to you, the research findings suggest the next best thing you can do is sleep on it.
7. Make time for Relaxation. Practice diaphgragmatic breathing, get a massage, practice yoga, take a bubble bath, do whatever relaxes you. Calming the physical response to stress is step 1 for keeping stress at bay.
Remember, if you start to feel overwhelmed the best thing you can do is reach out for support. Learn more here.
Take care.
[1] Cruwys (2015) also found that students wellbeing had substantially improved 1 month after submitting their thesis. On average, depression and negative affect scores had decreased significantly and self-esteem and life satisfaction were higher. So keep that in mind!
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