Better Management Stress

Running Head: BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 1

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS

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BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 2

PART 1

RESEARCH PROPOSAL

Introduction

Stress can be described as an emotional and mental imbalance level of a person. Stress

occurs in an individual due to several internal and external reasons, creating a boundary around

one’s personality (Oommen, 2014). Stress levels have been observed in the current world and are

attaining momentum in the administrative work frames. Researchers have determined different

factors that cause stress among the individuals and have discussed different ways to reduce

stress. Similarly, psychologists have recommended several stress interventions that individuals

can utilize to minimize the levels of stress in their personal lives.

In this study, I will focus on how to reduce my stress levels by using several stress

interventions such as exercises, deep breathing, meditation, eating a healthy diet and enough

sleep. A stress intervention is an activity or a program that aims at reducing or assisting an

individual to minimize negative effects of stress. The stress interventions that I will select for this

study have been applied by other researchers with great success in regards to better handling

stressful moments. A study done by Granath et al. (2007) regarding stress management identified

yoga as an exercise to reduce stress levels of an individual. The author says that yoga is an

exercise that focuses on an individual’s breathing patterns and physical training hence assisting

in relaxation of muscles as well as mediation. Additionally, he describes it as a stimulant of

blood flow supplying energy to the brain and the nervous system. This particular article supports

my research on how to reduce my stress levels through the discussion of breathing patterns and

meditation as some of my interventions. Another research done by Quoidbach et, al (2015) about

stress management techniques acknowledged emotion regulation as a positive intervention to

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 3

reduce an individual’s stress levels. In the research, he shows how one can apply the emotion

regulation approaches before, during and after the positive emotional events. This article applies

to my research because I will also discuss how my interventions impacted positively on my

emotions.

Hypothesis

The hypothesis of this research will be to test the effectiveness of selected stress

interventions, i.e., exercises, meditation, eating a healthy diet and enough sleep in better

managing stress.

Methods

In the process of obtaining realistic, practical and empirical for my investigation, I will

use qualitative research method. I will collect both primary data and secondary data whereby; for

primary data collection, I will answer a list of questionnaire questions in a bid to determine main

stressors as well as the effectiveness of the selected stress intervention in overcoming stress.

In regards to the secondary data, I will research works of different scholars who have

researched the stress intervention in the past. I will focus on scholarly journal articles, peer-

reviewed journal as well as website articles to develop the most detailed stress recovery strategy.

Additionally, I will research on stress management measures proposed by these scholars in the

workplaces and personal life.

I will conduct a seven days intervention aiming at reducing my stress levels whereby I

will use sleep, taking deep breaths and meditation in better managing of my stress levels. As for

the sleep stress intervention, I will record the sleeping time and wake-up time to determine the

hours of hours I slept which will consequently alert me of my progress in regards to reduction of

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 4

stress. Recording my breathing for the 7 days will comprise of the energy before and after the

breathing sessions to determine the progress of my personal stress levels. Finally, I will record

five things that I am grateful for each night during a personal reflection and meditation moment

just before sleeping.

Obstacle

In developing this research, I face a challenge of having sampling bias due to using few

participants. The results of the research would be more comprehensive if data were collected

from more people. To deal with sampling bias, I will collect secondary data from previous

researches done on large sample size and compare the results with my study for reliability

purposes.

Conclusion

In conclusion, before adopting the proposed interventions, I will note their success rates

from previous use by other researchers. After adopting the interventions, I will conduct a

personal evaluation to determine if the proposed stress interventions will result to reduction of

stress level or complete eradication of stressful moments. I will do this by observing the levels of

stress upon occurrence stress triggering activity over a period of one week.

Table 1: DAILY STRESS INVENTORY

Stressing Event

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

1. Performed poorly at task

2. Performed poorly due to others

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 5

Stressing Event

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

3. Thought about unfinished work

4. Hurried to meet deadline

5. Interrupted during task/activity

6. Someone spoiled your completed task

7. Did something you are unskilled at

8. Unable to complete task

9. Was unorganized

10. Criticized or verbally attacked

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 6

PART 2

RESEARCH PROJECT PAPER

INTRODUCTION

Stress can be described as an emotional and mental imbalance level of a person. Stress occurs in

an individual due to several internal and external reasons, creating a boundary around one’s

personality (Oommen, 2014). Stress levels have been observed in the current world and are

attaining momentum in the administrative work frames. Researchers have determined different

factors that cause stress among the individuals and have discussed different ways to reduce

stress. Similarly, psychologists have recommended several stress interventions that individuals

can utilize to minimize the levels of stress in their personal lives.

Importance of the topic

The topic was important because it assisted me in realizing my stress levels through the

tracking sheet and how to manage them through the interventions that I have discussed.

Additionally, the topic is significant because the interventions discussed in this research can as

well be effective for other people dealing with stress.

Background articles

A stress intervention is an activity or a program that aims at reducing or assisting an

individual to minimize negative effects of stress. The stress interventions that were selected for

this study have been applied by other researchers with great success in regards to better handling

stressful moments. A study done by Granath et al. (2007) regarding stress management identified

yoga as an exercise to reduce stress levels of an individual. The author says that yoga is an

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 7

exercise that focuses on an individual’s breathing patterns and physical training hence assisting

in relaxation of muscles as well as mediation. Additionally, he describes it as a stimulant of

blood flow supplying energy to the brain and the nervous system. This particular article is

relevant to my research and supports my ideas on how to reduce my stress levels through the

discussion of breathing patterns and meditation as some of my interventions. Another research

done by Quoidbach et, al (2015) about stress management techniques acknowledged emotion

regulation as a positive intervention to reduce an individual’s stress levels. In the research, he

shows how one can apply the emotion regulation approaches before, during and after the positive

emotional events. This article also supports my idea and is relevant to my research because I will

also discuss how my interventions impacted positively on my emotions.

Purpose of the study

The purpose of this study was to focus on how to reduce my stress level through the

interventions such as getting enough sleep, meditation, and deep breathing. Additionally, the

study aimed at investigating the effectiveness of the interventions on a personal level. Finally,

the research established how to reduce the impact of, or completely overcome stress in everyday

living

Hypothesis

The hypothesis of this research was to test the effectiveness of selected stress

interventions that is enough sleep, taking deep breaths and meditation in better managing stress.

METHODS

Participants

Since this was a self-assessment study, I was the only participant whereby I needed to

determine the main stressors as well as interventions to reduce stress.

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 8

Materials and measures

As for the triggers of stress, I used a stress tacking sheet to record the occurrence of 10

different events that I viewed as stressful or unpleasant. I recorded the amount of stress the

events caused me by adopting a scale from a study by Brantley et al., (1987) which ranged from

1 to 7, whereby 1 signified the occurrence of the even but was not stressful while seven indicated

that the event caused me extreme stress.

In regards to secondary data, I observed the results of two scholarly articles, i.e., Granath,

et al. (2007) which investigated the effectiveness of stress management through cognitive

behavioral therapy and yoga among a population of 26 women and 7 men. The second study was

by Quoidbach, et al. (2015) which investigated stress management techniques acknowledged

emotion regulation as a positive emotion regulation approaches before, during and after the

positive emotional events.

Procedure

I conducted a seven days intervention aiming at reducing my stress levels whereby I used

to sleep, taking deep breaths and meditation in better managing of my stress levels. As for the

sleep stress intervention, I recorded the sleeping time and wake-up time to determine the hours of

hours I slept which consequently alerted me of my progress in regards to reduction of stress.

Recording my breathing for the 7 days comprised of the energy before and after the breathing

sessions to determine the progress of my stress levels. Finally, I recorded five things that I was

grateful for each night during a personal reflection and meditation moment just before sleeping.

RESULTS

After conducting a three day tracking on my main causes of stress, I found out that that I

was most stressed when someone spoiled a task that I had completed where I registered the

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 9

highest scale level of 7. The second most stressing events were approaching deadlines as well as

being attacked verbally. On the other hand, I was least stressed when I performed a task that I

was unskilled about, when I was unorganized or when we performed poorly as a group.

Recording my breathing and sleep for the past week, it has been a very positive

experience because doing so enabled me to gain increased awareness and insights on factors that

directly affect my stress levels. While I often consider how these habits may affect my physical

health, I have never explored how they affect stress levels. This exercise was so valuable to me

because it provided me with stress management tools that can easily be incorporated into my

daily life.

Table 1: 4-Stroke Breath Logs

After practicing mindfulness for the past week, and observing my breathing as I do so, I

realized that they had a direct impact on my emotions, and more importantly, my stress. On May

10 at 10 pm I took4 deep breaths after experiencing an overwhelming day, and after conducting

the activity, I felt happier. On the second day, I carried out the breathing activity, and I felt

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 10

relaxed. After carrying the exercise till May 16th, I realized that every time that I encountered a

stressing activity and decided to use 4 deep breaths, I was able to overcome the stressful

moment.

Table 2: Sleep Logs

Upon adopting sleep as an intervention of stress reduction, I realized that had a positive

impact on my emotions, and more importantly, my stress as I was able to sleep normally and had

a perfect sleep. At the beginning of the sleeping exercise, I took all of the time from when I got

in bed to the time I fell asleep for example on the first day; I spent 2 hours before I fell asleep.

However, as the day progressed, I took very few minutes to fall asleep indicating that I had little

to think about. Eventfully I was able to have enough sleep reducing my levels of stress during the

day.

Table 3: Self Reflection and Mediation Logs

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 11

Participating in the reflection activity through a Gratitude Journal was a wonderful as it played a

huge role in reminding me how great my life was by focusing on five things that I was grateful for each

day. This activity left me feeling happier and more satisfied with my overall life. Furthermore, this

exercise reminded me that life has an infinite number of things to be grateful for. As someone who tends

to be pessimistic, keeping a gratitude journal enabled me to change my mindset by actively searching for

the reasons why my life is great. From the seven day recording, the most consistent things that I am glad

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 12

about include, good health, relationships with family, friends, and neighbors as well as material

belongings.

Results from a study done by Granath et al. (2007), the results indicated that cognitive

behavioral therapy and yoga are good ways of stress management with no much difference in

their effectiveness. On the other hand, the study by Quoidbach, et.al, (2015) found out that

emotional regulation yield positive outcome as a stress management technique before, during

and after the positive emotional events.

DISCUSSION

Brief Summary

From the results posted by this, study it is evident that having enough sleep, creating

sessions for personal meditation and taking deep breaths while dealing with stress are effective

ways of reducing it. The most profound intervention in my research was having enough sleep

because it helps one relax the brain muscles and nervous system as well as wake up when one is

feeling much better. The least effective intervention was taking deep breaths when dealing with

stress because the stressing events are unpredictable and are overwhelming hence one can forget

to breathe deeply.

Past research and theory

The results of this study conform to other studies done by previous scholars. One such study

is by Granath (2007) which states that taking deep breaths during yoga exercises helps an

individual to relax their mind and body. He insists that when taking deep breaths assist one to

relax however having enough sleep and physical exercise are recommended to boost the

breathing. The findings of this study are also in line with past theories of psychological stress

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 13

such as the Lazarus Theory which views stress as an individual’s reaction to their wellbeing and

wishing to manage the specific demands positively (Krohne, 2002).

Application to the real world

Moreover, the findings of this study apply to the real world especially when an individual is

dealing with personal stress. Most individuals do not share their stressing events and opt to deal

with them individually. Through, this research, many people will learn the best intervention to

take while dealing with stress to better their lives.

Future directions

Based on my research finding, I will ensure that I take enough sleep and change my sleep

patterns to get more sleep. It will assist in body and mind relaxation hence boosting my mental

and physical health.

Limitation

In developing this research, I faced a limitation of having sampling bias due to using few

participants. The results of the research would be more comprehensive if data was collected from

more people. To deal with sampling bias, I collected secondary data from previous researches

done on large sample size and compare the results with my study for reliability purposes.

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 14

References

Brantley, P. J., Waggoner, C. D., Jones, G. N., & Rappaport, N. B. (1987). A daily stress

inventory: Development, reliability, and validity. Journal of behavioral medicine, 10(1),

61-73

Granath. J., Ingvarsson, S., von Thiele, U. & Lundberg, U. (2007). Stress Management: A

Randomized Study of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Yoga, Cognitive Behaviour

Therapy, 35(1), 3-10,. doi: 10.1080/16506070500401292.

Krohne, H. W. (2002). Stress and coping theories. International Encyclopedia of the Social

Behavioral Sceinces, 22, 15163-15170.

Oommen Joshy, C. (2014). Analysis of stress and stress management interventions among

employees in the information technology (IT) sector in India and Ireland (Doctoral

dissertation, Dublin Business School)

Quoidbach, J., Mikolajczak, M., & Gross, J. J. (2015). Positive interventions: An emotion

regulation perspective. Psychological Bulletin, 141(3), 655-693. doi:http://dx.doi.org/

10.1037/a0038648

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 15

Appendices

Appendix 1: DAILY STRESS INVENTORY

Stressing Event

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

1. Performed poorly at task

2. Performed poorly due to others

3. Thought about unfinished work

4. Hurried to meet deadline

5. Interrupted during task/activity

6. Someone spoiled your completed task

7. Did something you are unskilled at

8. Unable to complete task

9. Was unorganized

10. Criticized or verbally attacked

BETTER MANAGEMENT OF STRESS 16

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