MotherScholar Stress and Resilience During the COVID-19 Pandemic

• In Event: Division J Vice Presidential Session. The Faculty Work Life Needs of Mother-Scholars in the Time of COVID-19

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a uniquely stressful and potentially traumatic environment for many, but particularly for MotherScholars. MotherScholars are likely to have unique and specific barriers to the balance and harmony of their pre COVID-19 roles due to increased role responsibilities at home and also in the workplace. Continuous stress and trauma is likely to result in poor coping and reduced mental and physical functioning in this group. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the effects of the COVID-19 experience on MotherScholars in order to create effective coping mechanisms specific to this population.

The Community Resilience Model (CRM) was used as the theoretical model for this study. The purpose of the CRM is to teach skills to recognize when a person is outside their typical resilient zone and use techniques to reestablish coping and return to a pre-trauma state (Trauma Resource Center, 2020). The premise is that when a person is in a state of wellness in mind, body, and spirit then they are also in the resilient zone and cope well. Trauma may cause a person to slip outside of their resilient zone and be stuck in either the low or the high zone. Low zone symptoms are expressed as depression or sadness, isolation, exhaustion, fatigue, and numbness. High zone symptoms are expressed as being edgy, manic, irritable, anxious, panicked, exhibiting angry outbursts, or having heightened or increased pain (Trauma Resource Center, 2020). This study examined the stress and resiliency of the participants with the future expectation of developing an intervention to increase coping using the skills in the CRM.

The proposed research was a mixed methods pilot study to ascertain the unique psychological and physical impacts on MotherScholars due to the current COVID-19 pandemic. The target population for this study was MotherScholars. Faculty who self-identify as MotherScholars were recruited using faculty databases, university electronic newsletters, email, social media, and snowball collection and drafting. All participant information was confidential. The participants agreed to answer an online survey using demographic questions, the Perceived Stress Scale (Cohen, Kamarck, & Mermelstein, 1983) and the Coping Self-Efficacy Scale (Chesney, Neilands, Chambers, Taylor & Folkman, 2006) as well as qualitative questions via online/video interview or by phone. Quantitative data was analyzed using a statistical program while qualitative data was analyzed with individual open coding (Glaser & Straus, 1967) and constant comparison methods (Corbin & Strauss, 1993). To ensure the dependability and credibility of findings frequent member checks were utilized (Guba & Lincoln, 1981).

The results of this study provided vital information about MotherScholars during an unprecedented time in recent history. The collected data was significant because it identified stress levels and coping in a selected group of MotherScholars but this information also identified key factors to reduce barriers, create role harmony, and inform interventions to reduce stress and increase resiliency in this unique group.

Authors

• Mary Hawkins

• Amanda Pruit

• Lauren E Burrow, Stephen F. Austin State University