Experiences of Stress - A Focus Group Interview Study Among Swedish Adolescents During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Moa Hörbo, Camilla Johansson, Tide Garnow and 2 others
PMID 34967254WHAT IT FOUND
Adolescents reported stress from balancing school, leisure, social media, family demands and pandemic worries.
Some described moderate stress as helping focus, while too much was reported alongside sleep problems, physical symptoms and emotional reactions.
Key findings
01The analysis identified two categories of adolescent stress experience: sources of stress and manifestations of stress, each with four sub-categories.
02Adolescents reported stress sources including prioritizing school and leisure, demands and conflicts, fear of missing out, and worries about the pandemic.
03Adolescents described stress as sometimes helping focus and motivation, but too much stress decreased focus and motivation and was reported with sleep, physical and emotional reactions.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
All students came from one compulsory school in Sweden, so the themes may not transfer to other schools or countries. The study took place in August 2020 when Sweden had low infection spread, few restrictions and schools largely open, so pandemic stress may differ from other settings. Two focus groups had only two participants instead of the planned 4 to 8, although the authors included them because they were rich. The findings are self-reported qualitative experiences, not measured outcomes or tested effects of any school nurse conversation.
Declared interests
The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest. No funding source is reported.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the reported links between stress and sleep, physical symptoms, emotional reactions or performance as tested cause-and-effect findings. This was a focus group interview study of adolescents' experiences, and no intervention or outcome measure was tested.