INTRODUCTION:

Human beings are the first and best creation of God. Every human being has his or her own problems, frustrations, worries, and happiness. In day-to-day life, we face all these things. Depending on individuals and situations, the level of problems changes. Every person is unique, and the capacity to face problems also varies. The size of a problem, whether big or small, is determined by a person's ability to handle it. Every one of us strives to satisfy our needs while struggling to achieve something. If we cannot achieve satisfactory results, most people either change their goals or modify their approach. They may also adopt defense mechanisms to cope with problems. This characteristic of living organisms is termed adjustment.

Adjustment disorder Is an unexpectedly strong emotional or behavioral reaction to an identifiable stressful life change. Every individual has his or her own internal feelings. However, for nursing students, these feelings are often different. Their curriculum is very rigorous, requiring them to handle both theoretical and clinical areas simultaneously. Medical terminology is unfamiliar to students, and after their basic studies, they must adapt to a professional course. Due to these challenges, nursing students face significant levels of distress.

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY:

Teenagers form a special group. They are energetic, active, and involved in various challenging activities. Teenage years are inevitably a period of stress. Adolescents must keep their minds strong and active to overcome stress. The main stress factors during this period include academic pressure, higher studies, difficulty in adapting to changing situations, body image concerns, and staying in hostels. During this time, teenagers often focus more on controlling their stress than on achieving their goals. They also tend to have a narrow mindset due to their inability to communicate with family members about academic stress.

In the nursing field, students experience moderate to severe levels of academic stress due to assignments, new procedures, the clinical environment, night duties, the tight schedule of the semester system, responsibilities pertaining to nursing care, theory classes, and learning various nursing techniques. Nursing is a professional course that requires significant self-study. Amidst all these responsibilities, nursing students experience high levels of stress while trying to complete their tasks.

As a result, their behavior may change due to stress. They may become severely agitated, frustrated, and moody. Some individuals experience difficulty in eating, sleeping, or talking and tend to avoid responsibilities. Increased use of alcohol, drugs, cigarettes, nail-biting, fidgeting, and pacing are common signs of stress. In extreme cases, students may skip meals or lose sleep entirely.

Adjustment is a psychological mechanism used to manage problems or stress. Students may not be able to eliminate stress entirely, but they adopt coping strategies to handle it. In other words, adjustment is the psychological process of adapting, coping, and managing issues. Nursing students must learn to cope with educational, social, personal, emotional, economic, and college-related challenges. The definition of college adjustment reflects how well an individual adapts to academic life and its impact on personal growth. A student's level of adjustment is often determined by their ability to maintain grades and eventually complete their degree.

NEED FOR THE STUDY:

Nursing is a profession that requires students to provide autonomous and collaborative care to individuals of all ages, families, groups, and communities, whether sick or well, in various healthcare settings. The primary goal of nursing is to promote health, prevent illness, and care for the ill, disabled, and dying. Since nursing students play an essential role in patient care, they must receive quality education and training to become registered nurses. Excelling in clinical practice is a major challenge for students. Academic stress is a form of mental distress associated with anticipated frustration due to academic failure or fear of potential failure.

Common causes of stress in nursing students include:

· Fear of unknown situations

· Working with medical equipment

· Interaction with hospital staff

· Faculty incivility

· The gap between theory and practice

· Fear of making mistakes

· Communication difficulties with staff, peers, and patients

National and international studies indicate that academic stress is predominantly observed in female nursing students aged 18 to 25 who are unmarried, do not have children, do not have paid employment, and live with parents or guardians. Research shows that 82% of first-year university students experience stress.

Teenagers often struggle to cope with stressful situations, which can disrupt their physical and mental health and disturb the body's natural balance (homeostasis). Increased stress levels among first-year B.Sc. nursing students can negatively impact their physical and mental well-being, reducing their productivity.

Therefore, conducting a study to assess the level of stress among first-year B.Sc. nursing students is essential. The study also aims to explore the association between stress levels and socio-demographic variables. The investigator strongly feels the need to assess learning adjustment behavior among first-year B.Sc. nursing students. Understanding their adjustment challenges will help them adapt to sudden changes in their learning environment and enable them to serve patients more effectively.

METHODS:

Research approach:

A descriptive approch was used to assess the level of learning adjustment behaviour among nursing students in Lourdes College of Nursing, Ernamkulam

Research design:

The research design adopted for the study is a non-experimental design.

Settings:

The study was conducted in 1^st year B.Sc. Nursing students in Lourdes College of Nursing

Population:

The study was conducted in 1^st year B.Sc. Nursing students in Lourdes College of nursing.

Sample and Sample Size:

The sample of the present study comprised nursing students in Lourdes College of nursing Ernakulum..In this the sample size is 30 students.

Sampling Technique:

Random sampling technique is used to collect data.

Data Collection Tool and Techniques:

Self structured questionnaire was prepared to assess level of learning adjustment behavior among 1^st year B.Sc. Nursing students.

Description of Tool:

Questionnaires were used to assess the level of learning adjustment behaviour among nursing students. The instruments were developed after an extensive review of the literature on learning adjustment behavior and discussion with experts. Total score of the study is 80 marks. Each question carries 4,3,2,1 marks respectively. The Strongly agree answer carries 4 marks,Agree answer carries 3 marks,stronly disagree answer carries 2 mark,Disagree 1 mark.

RESULT:

The tool consists of:

Section I: consisting of demographic variables like age, sex, socioeconomic status, education, type of family, area of residence.

Section II: A questionnaire to assess the learning adjustment behavior among nursing students, it consisted of 20 questions on learning adjustments.

SECTION A: DISTRIBUTION OF SUBJECT ACCORDING TO DEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES.

Table 1: (n= 30)

variables	Frequency (f)	(%)
Demographic variables
1.Age group
a) 18 years	13	43
b) 19 years	16	53
c) 20 years	0	03
d) 21 years	1	00
2.Sex
a) Male	7	7%
b) Female	93	93%
3. Type of Family
a) nuclear family	27	90%
b) Joint Family	03	10%
c) Extended Family	00	00%
4.Type of Residence
a) Urban	9	30%
b) Rural	21	70%
5) Previous Residence in Hostel
a) Yes	13	13%
b) No	87	87%
6.Educational Qualification of father
a) Illeterate	0	0%
b) SSLC	43	43%
c)Higher Secondary	27	27%
d)Higher Studies	30	30%
6.Educational Qualification of Mother
a) Illeterate	3	3%
b) SSLC	13	13%
c)Higher Secondary	33	33%
d)Higher Studies	50	50%

The socio demographic data of the students shows that 16 of them (53.0%) belongs to age group19 years. And 93 of them (93.0%) are females. In these 27 students (90.0%) from nuclear family. Majority 21(70.0%) of the students were from rural areas. 87(87.0%) of the students were no previous hostel. The educational qualifiction of father 43(43.0%) were SSLC, the educational qualifiction of Mother 50(50.0%) were Higher studies.

SECTION B: Classification of subject according to level of learning adjustment behaviour

Part A: Table 4: Frequency and percentage distribution of sample based on level of learning adjustment behaviour.

Table: 2 N=30

Level of learning adjustment Behaviour	Frequency	%
Mild	0	0%
Moderate	24	80%
Severe	6	20%

Table 2 shows that 80% of students are moderately adjusted, 20% of students are severely adjusted and none are mildly adjusted.

SECTION C: Analysis of Level of Learning Adjustment Behaviour

Table 3:

Variable	Mean	Median	SD
Level of learning adjustment behaviuor
36.2	36.2
36	36	36	4.05
4.05Adjustment	4.05

Table 3 shows that the mean is 36.2 and median is 36 and standard deviation is 4.05.

SELECTION D: Asociation of Level of Learning Adjustment Behaviour with Selected Socio Demographic Variable

Table 4: Association between level of learning adjustment behaviour with Age in year, Type of family, Type of residing area, educational qualification of mother, educational qualification of father.

Characters	Mild learning adjustmen	Moderate Learning adjustment	Severe learning adjustment	Total	df	Chi square X2	P value
Age (in years)
18	0	9	4	13	6	1.75	12.59
19	0	14	2	16
20	0	1	0	1
21	0	0	0	0
Gender
Male	0	2	0	2	2	0.57	5.99
Female	0	22	6	28	2	0.57	5.99
Type of family
Nuclear	0	11	6	27	4	0.8	9.49
Joint	0	03	0	03
Extended	0	0	0	0
Type of area
Rural	0	8	1	9	2	0.63	5.99
Urban	0	16	5	21	2	0.63	5.99
previous residence in hostel
Yes	0	3	1	4	2	0.072 5.99	5.99
No	0	21	5	26	2	0.072 5.99	5.99
Educationalqualification of father
Illiterate	0	0	0	0		3.78	12.59
SSLC	0	10	03	13
Higher secondary	0	05	05	08	6
Higher studies	0	09	0	09	6
Educational qualification of mother
Illiterate	0	0	0	0	6	3.78	12.59
SSLC	0	4	0	04
Higher secondary	0	09	01	10
Higher studies	0	10	05	15

Based on tool to assess the level of learning adjustment problem and behaviour, 6 (20%) students has severe learning adjustment problem, 24(80%) students had moderate learning adjustment problem and none had mild learning adjustment problem.

CONCLUSION:

The following conclusions were drawn on to the basis of the study data shows that 6 (20%) students has severe learning adjustment problem, 24 (80%) students had moderate learning adjustment problem and none had mild learning adjustment . There was no association between knowledge and selected demographic variable.

ETHICAL STANDARDS:

This study was conducted after getting approval from the Institutional Ethics Committee and after obtaing written consents from all subjects.

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Received on 04.08.2025 Revised on 23.08.2025

Accepted on 08.09.2025 Published on 27.10.2025

Available online from November 08, 2025

Int. J. Nursing Education and Research. 2025;13(4):267-271.

DOI: 10.52711/2454-2660.2025.00053

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