Psychology research paper, exercise, and stress Abstract essay

Psychologyresearch paper, exercise, and stress

Abstract

Theresearch primarily focuses on discovering the effects of exercises onthe stress level of college students. The study based upon 33 collegecorrespondents who were interviewed and gave their views and opinionsas far as exercises and workout is concerned. The study also aims atdetermining the frequency in which the correspondents engagethemselves in various exercises and their experiences whenever theyengage themselves in the exercises.

Psychologyresearch paper, exercise, and stress

Introduction

Evidently,stress is not something that is strange to every individual in thecontemporary world today. According to Vankim (2013) stress isinevitable because it is normal to everybody’s life. Each and everyindividual is in one way or another faced with stress whenever theyare in a bad situation. Stress is sometimes good as it motivates andinspires people to work harder to succeed. Nevertheless, too muchstress can be destructive as it negatively affects their performanceOn the other hand, physical activities and exercises play asignificant role in managing the level of stress since it cannot beavoided as it is part and parcel of an individual’s daily life(VanKim&amp Nelson, 2013). Inthis discussion, therefore, the principal focus will be on howexercises affect the level of stress of college students.

Method

Tosuccessfully carry out the research, a total of 33 respondents wererequested to take part in the study. Also, various methods weredeployed to collect the data that was used to establish the impact ofdifferent exercises on the level of stress among college students.The survey involved a total of 33 respondents of which 69.7% weremale and 30.3% female. The age of the respondents ranged between 19to 50 years old. However, most of the participants were in theirtwenties. Interviewing the respondents was the predominant methodthat was used to conduct the research where they were asked variousquestions regarding the topic under research. The various questionsthat were used to collect data include the following.

Howmany days a week do you exercise?

Atotal of 33 respondents took part in this particular question. Here,they were expected to the frequency or how often they take part inexercises within a week.

Whatis your attitude towards exercise?

Also,a total of 33 respondents participated in giving the attitude andperception that they have towards engaging in workouts as well asother physical activities.

Whatis you feeling toward your grade?

Here,32 respondents took part where they were expected to give their viewsand what they felt about their grades.

Doyou think exercise can make you feel that you have more energy duringthe day?

Atotal of 33 respondents contributed to this particular question wherethey were expected to give their opinions on whether exercises andphysical activities reenergize them during the day as they indulge invarious activities.

Duringthis or last semester, how often have you felt nervous and stressed?

Inthis particular section of the interview, a total of 33 respondentstook part where they were expected to give the rate at which theyfelt nervous or stressed in the previous semester.

Howoften do you engage in regular activity during your leisure timewithin a week long enough to work up a sweat?

Atotal of 33 respondents also took part. They were expected to givetheir views on how intense do they engage themselves in regularactivities during their leisure time in a typical seven-day periodtill they experience rapid heartbeats or work up a sweat.

Whatwould you like to do when you feel stressed?

Atotal of 32 respondents participated in which they were to give theirpreferences on what they usually choose to whenever they were in astressful situation.

Whatis your feeling towards exercises?

Equallyimportant, the respondents were respondents were expected to givetheir feelings and the perceptions that they had towards physicalactivities. A total of 32 respondents took part.

Howmany credits do you have this semester?

Atotal of 33 respondents participated where they were to give thenumber of credit attained in this particular semester to determinethe effect of exercises on the same.

Whatis your GPA?

Further,33 respondents participated in giving out their Grade Point Averageto establish how workouts and physical activities contributed totheir academic achievement.

Results

Fromthe methods and various research questions used during the study,data was collected from the respondents as illustrated in thefollowing discussion.

Numberof day’s respondents do exercises in a week

Itwas established that out of the 33 respondents 30.3% do not take partin any physical activity within a one week period. In addition, 27.3%of them participate in work outs and exercises two days within aweek, 18.2% of them exercise 5 days in a week while 15.2% participatein 3 days.

Respondents’feeling towards their grade

The32 respondents had varying views regarding their feeling towardstheir grade.53.% felt that their grade was average,21.9% slightlystressful,15.6% were of the opinion that they were above averagewhereas 9.4% felt that there was no stress while none of them deemedit to be a hard one.

Ifexercises make them feel have more energy during the day.

Outof the 33 respondents who took part, 51.5% supported the idea thatexercises made them feel that they have more energy during the day.48.5% felt that sometimes exercises reenergizes an individual duringthe day while none of them was against the idea.

Frequencyin which they felt nervous and stressed in the previous semester

Itwas also established that 27.3% of the 33 respondents whoparticipated felt nervous and stressed fairly often in the previoussemester compared to 24.2% who experienced the same very often.

Intensityof engaging in physical activity long enough resulting to rapidheartbeats and sweating in a 7day period

Itwas found out that 48.5% of the 33 respondents sometimes do engage inregular activity in their leisure time within the weak to an extentof sweating and experiencing frequent heartbeats. On the other hand,24.2% did it so often. In addition, 27.3% never engaged themselves inregular activities within the seven day period.

Whatrespondents prefer to do when they feel stressed?

Thevarious respondents gave different opinions on the activities thatthey prefer to do whenever they are stressed. They include having abike ride, meditating, having sex or sleeping. Also, some of themprefer to relax, watch television, work out to see and talk to theirfriends, listen to music or watch YouTube videos, eat, go outrunning, drink beer and do the yoga. Additionally, some of themprefer to play games or engage themselves in something that couldmake them forget the stressful situation.

Respondents`feeling towards exercises?

Outof the 32 respondents, to some a stressful situation was often one ofthe better parts of their day since it helps them manage stress aslong as there was some motivation for them to do, others felt thatexercises made them happy, stronger and helped relieve the stress.Additionally, they felt that exercising was part of a healthy diet,and it is very crucial for everyone since it is good for physical aswell as the mental health. Besides, some of the respondents felt thatexercises enabled them stay active and be motivated despite the factthat it is painful going to the gym and doing the workouts. Othersexpressed the desire of having more time to engage themselves in thephysical activity (VanKim&amp Nelson, 2013). Equally important, some respondents preferred to exercises thatinvolved more of activity such yoga, hiking, biking, taking walksrather than the ones which are explicitly a workout, for instance,running and going to the gym.

Further,other respondents engaged in the activities more frequently andanticipated to incorporate it into their schedule in the subsequentsemesters. Others felt that participating in exercises is a nobleidea but time is a limiting factor (Stults-Kolehmainen&amp Sinha, 2014).Also,the respondents felt that exercising made them have a better sleepand have more energy, and they love it. Lastly, other collegestudents who took part in the study felt that they don’t need itand makes them more tired.

Creditsthe respondents had in the current semester

Fromthe research which involved 33 respondents, 48.5% had their creditranging from 12 to15, 36.4% under 12 while 15.2% had their creditsranging from 15 to 20.

Respondents’GPA

Outof the 33 respondents who took part, 33.3% had their grade pointaverage range between 2.8 to 3.2. Also, 33.3% of them had 3.3 to 3.8,18.2% had 2.0 to 2.7 whereas 15.2% had their GPA range from 3.0 to4.5.

Discussion

Inthis study, the stress level amongst college students has a directcorrelation to the degree and magnitude in which they involvethemselves in workouts, physical activities and various exercises.Unquestionably, the findings from the various correspondentsrevealed that exercises have got much more benefits to an individual.They help relieve stress, significantly contributing to the physicaland mental growth of a person thus substantially improving theirhealth conditions (VanKim&amp Nelson, 2013). Therefore,it is equally important for college student to create time out oftheir learning schedules so that they can involve themselves inexercises. This will have a positive influence on their school workand academic performance in general. As it has been established,exercises make one have a better sleep and be more active(Stults-Kolehmainen&amp Sinha, 2014).Theseare some of the basic requirements for any student, and they have tobe sober-minded having a fresh mind ready to absorb the ideas thoughtthus resulting to more productive learning experience. There is alsoneed for creating programs within colleges that encourage students toactively participate in regular activities.

References

VanKim,N. A., &amp Nelson, T. F. (2013). Vigorous physical activity, mentalhealth, perceived stress, and socializing among collegestudents.&nbspAmericanJournal of Health Promotion,&nbsp28(1),7-15.