The Role of Self-Compassion in the Relationship between Stress and Academic Achievement Among Undergraduate Students
Presentation Type
Poster
Keywords
self-compassion, stress, academic achievement
Department
Psychology
Major
Psychology
Abstract
This study examined the relationship between academic achievement and perceived levels of stress to self-compassion among undergraduate students at Pepperdine University. It was hypothesized that official GPA would be positively associated with levels of self-compassion and negatively associated with levels of perceived stress. There were a total of 58 participants, ranging from second-year to fifth-year class status. Participants were asked to complete a survey composed of the Self-Compassion Scale, State Self-Compassion Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, and several demographic questions. Contrary to our hypotheses, a negative correlation was observed between GPA and self-compassion (r = -.37, p = .002), along with a positive correlation between GPA and perceived stress (r = .34, p= .004). It was hypothesized that self-compassion mediates the relationship between perceived stress and academic achievement, this hypothesis was not significantly supported through findings. Exploratory analyses suggested that high GPA is associated with being a woman. With gender and SCS as predictors of GPA, SCS was determined to be negatively associated with GPA. Results from this study contributed to the current literature researching the linkage between these examined variables. Considering the effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic, this study provided valuable information concerning this relationship for undergraduate students.
Faculty Mentor
Steve Rouse, Janet Trammell
Location
Waves Cafeteria
Start Date
25-3-2022 2:00 PM
End Date
25-3-2022 3:00 PM
The Role of Self-Compassion in the Relationship between Stress and Academic Achievement Among Undergraduate Students
Waves Cafeteria
This study examined the relationship between academic achievement and perceived levels of stress to self-compassion among undergraduate students at Pepperdine University. It was hypothesized that official GPA would be positively associated with levels of self-compassion and negatively associated with levels of perceived stress. There were a total of 58 participants, ranging from second-year to fifth-year class status. Participants were asked to complete a survey composed of the Self-Compassion Scale, State Self-Compassion Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, and several demographic questions. Contrary to our hypotheses, a negative correlation was observed between GPA and self-compassion (r = -.37, p = .002), along with a positive correlation between GPA and perceived stress (r = .34, p= .004). It was hypothesized that self-compassion mediates the relationship between perceived stress and academic achievement, this hypothesis was not significantly supported through findings. Exploratory analyses suggested that high GPA is associated with being a woman. With gender and SCS as predictors of GPA, SCS was determined to be negatively associated with GPA. Results from this study contributed to the current literature researching the linkage between these examined variables. Considering the effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic, this study provided valuable information concerning this relationship for undergraduate students.