The culture of stress in elite independent schools is having a lasting effect on our students beyond graduation.

Literature Review

Abstract

While there have been many studies on the impact of stress, especially in regards to academic achievement, the lasting effect of stress is only just beginning to be studied. The culture of stress is pervasive in independent schools, due to many factors that will be outlined throughout this literary review, but the long term effects, and what we should do about it in our schools have only modestly been studied. The evidence outlined will show a range of studies that direct our attention to differing opinions on the route cause of stress, what the short and long-term effects of stress are, and solutions for changing the narrative that stress and pressure are expected and unable to change in independent school environments.  

The cause of stress within a competitive school environment

The notion that school has been a targeted source of stress for students is not new. In the rigorous environment of independent schools, it is a challenge to foster a culture of achievement without overly stressing students. Schools are beginning to recognize the need to create intentional learning environments where they can give students positive strategies institutionally and individually that will help with managing stress (Leonard, Gwadz, Ritchie, Linick, Clelend, Elliot, & Grethel, 2015).

Student stress can come from many sources, but the inherent nature of it in independent schools may come from the structure of the school itself. Students, parents, and teachers all feel measured by the student's performance (Spencer, Walsh, Liang, Mousseau, & Lund, 2018). Schools care about student success because it reflects on the success of their institution, and thus students continue to enroll, alumni donate, funds are grown, and they can continue to keep their doors open (Leonard et al., 2015). 

Students, on the other hand, believe their main purpose is to get into a good college (Leonard et al., 2015).  Recently, there has been increasing competition for admittance to elite colleges, and parents, teachers, and students are all aware of this change. Student’s perception of this is not wrong; college is important for success in life, and parents are often investing in their children by sending them to independent schools so that they can attend the best colleges. This narrow definition of success causes stress (Spencer et al., 2018). The pressure to achieve, particularly in regards to college acceptance at elite universities, can put insurmountable pressure on adolescents (Leonard et al., 2015). 

Parents and students are investing in students' lifelong success that is reflected in both students and parents (Leonard et al., 2015). In a study done by Lyman and Luthar in, comparing affluent students attending an independent school to lower-class students attending a match charter school, they noticed that all upper-middle-class families emphasize academic excellence in comparison to few lower-class parents (2014). They similarly noted that affluent parents could be more detached and that neglect has a powerful impact on the mental health of students. Students feel like achievement and success are more important than mental health. This perception comes from the success of their parents, the competitive atmosphere of school, and broader societal values (Spencer et al., 2018).

The push for perfection

Perfectionism is directly correlated to academic stress, regardless of if it is self-oriented or socially prescribed (Flett, Hewitt, Besser, Su, Vaillancourt, Boucher, Munro, Davidson & Gale, 2016). While inherently different, these two types of perfectionism both cause stress. In a study done by Flett et al. in 2016, the authors found that stress that is caused by high self-expectations is correlated with self-oriented perfectionism, but academic stress was linked to socially prescribed perfectionism, and therefore it did not affect self-oriented perfectionism. Self-oriented perfectionism is more flexible, and negative symptoms can be treated. On the other hand, students that are externally motivated (i.e., be famous, rich or admired), are more likely to lack satisfaction even when achieving those goals. They are also more likely to present themselves as perfect, but because of this, their inability to share self-doubt contributes to feelings of depression and loneliness (Lyman & Luthar, 2014).

In a study done by Spencer et al., they examined the impact of stress on an all-girls independent school (2018). The nuanced perspective of girls regarding stress is important to delineate, but the findings did not exclude the similar impact these findings might have on boys. The researchers found that girls are aware that they are directly competing for admissions spots in elite schools. Because of this, peer relationships are challenging to form because it is so competitive, and there is no time as the girls work to maintain the perception that they are always out working their peers. Peer relationships should be a positive influence, but girls feel like they don’t have time to make friends or are too competitive with their peers to be friends. This is a clear opportunity for school growth, as schools should be helping establish healthy peer relationships, rather than rewarding individual academic achievement. Private school students were consistently more envious of classmates, likely because they are comparing themselves to those around them (Lyman & Luthar, 2014).

The lasting effects of stress due to school culture 

Studies show that chronic stress is more prevalent in independent schools and the prevalent issue may carry a greater weight because of the long term effects on mental health (Leonard et al., 2015). Students in more competitive academic environments perceive higher stress. The perceived stress comes from parental pressure, frequent testing, higher levels of workload (Suldo, Shaunessy, & Hardesty, 2008). Competition and stress affect how students feel, their ability to healthy build relationships with peers, and how they are positively interacting with parents (Spencer et al., 2018). High academic standards may increase stress and later impede academic performance. High-stress school environments with high academic expectations can increase school-related stress and reduce academic performance (D. Kaplan, Liu, H. Kaplan, 2005). If students don’t feel comfortable and have trouble adjusting to their academic environment, they can struggle to academically perform, both in the immediacy and in the future. The research found that high personal academic standards are not enough to guarantee academic success. In fact, high personal standards can cause stress, which may hurt academic success. School-Related stress in middle school can have adverse effects on academic success in high school (D. Kaplan, Liu, H. Kaplan, 2005).

Negative feelings towards school have the biggest effect on grades. One particular study showed the older a student gets, the better they are at separating their emotions from their academic success. This might explain why stress and academic success are not always correlated. This claim was regarding the finding that middle school students' academic success was more affected by their overall mood, coping mechanisms, and stress, whereas the older adolescents' academic success, was only negatively effected by their disinterest in school. They found that the older students, the less their general mood, affected their academic success (Arsenio & Loria, 2014).

The biological explanation for stress in adolescents, and what the long term effect of stress might be on cognition

Researcher R. D. Romeo looked into the long term effects of stress on the adolescent brain. He found that adolescent’s response to stress is unique because their brains aren’t fully developed and that there may be hormonal responses that affect the long term effects of stress on developing adolescent brains. There is a perfect storm of sorts where the developing adolescent brain causes more enduring stress reactors, while also having less developed parts of the brain that can be detrimentally affected by stress. Prolonged stress can decrease cognitive function, and because the adolescent brain is still developing, it is speculated that it will not only take longer for the brain to repair itself but that there might be irreversible effects. Instead of getting better as adolescence goes on, the risk increases because of greater stress-induced cortisol levels. Having extended exposure to certain hormones caused by stress can have a detrimental effect on cognitive function and impaired the immune system (Romeo, 2013). 

Adolescents face many challenges and developmental changes that can affect life satisfaction, but stress can have a long term effect on life because of negative environmental influences (Burger& Samuel, 2016). In the study done by Burger and Samuel, they determined that there is a direct correlation between stress and negative life satisfaction. There was also a direct correlation between self-efficacy and positive life satisfaction. Thus, school and stress levels play a significant role in life satisfaction, and school-related stress can impact feelings of satisfaction later on in life. (Burger& Samuel, 2016)

How schools can help reduce the impacts of stress through positive coping mechanisms

Not stress alone, but how students cope with stress is a correlating factor with diminished academic success (Suldo, Shaunessy, & Hardesty, 2008). Schools can mitigate some of these issues by restructuring the school day for more sleep and fewer classes to reduce workload. They can also teach effective stress management in the curriculum and extracurricular activities. Schools can play a role in reducing the stigma of mental health issues and provide better support for substance abuse and mental health counselors. They can educate both students and parents on the seriousness of the issue and where they can go for help (Leonard et al., 2015).

Stress does not automatically cause negative life satisfaction; it can be mitigated by good self-efficacy. It is the combination of stress and poor resourcefulness and the ability to cope that causes negative life satisfaction (Burger& Samuel, 2016). A positive attitude can have a huge impact on stress levels as a coping mechanism. Conversely, poor coping methods, and negative attitudes have a huge effect on stress, perceived stress, and student's overall happiness. Students that have positive coping mechanisms are happier (Suldo, Shaunessy, & Hardesty, 2008). Being able to cope with stress reduces the effects of stress on long-term happiness (Burger& Samuel, 2016). The strategies that adolescents use to cope with academic stress (compared to social stress) are related to emotional disposition and how successful they are in school (Arsenio & Loria, 2014). 

One study showed that coping styles, while they have a strong effect on students overall happiness, do not directly correlate to student success, which may point to why our schools are hesitant to address the issue, because students are still succeeding despite student unhappiness and the possibility of negative impacts later in life for our students. Coping has a large impact on overall mental health, but that is not correlated with academic success (Suldo, Shaunessy, & Hardesty, 2008). 

In contrast, Arsenio and Loria determined that there is a correlation between stress, coping mechanisms, and academic success (2014). They found that there are significant connections between coping styles, academic stress, how adolescents handle their emotions and grades, and that coping skills are directly related to academic success. 

Regardless, there is little debate that a sense of belonging can have a tremendous effect on academic performance. Training for coping strategies and stress reduction will greatly improve academic performance and their sense of belonging (D. Kaplan, Liu, H. Kaplan, 2005). Students that feel valued and welcomed in their school environment will have greater sustained academic engagement, which will increase academic performance (D. Kaplan, Liu, H. Kaplan, 2005). Similarly, having a sense of purpose beyond themselves, i.e., community service and civic engagement, can actually reduce stress. Peer relationships are stronger because they aren’t directly competing in contrast to when students are seeking individual wealth or fame. Having a sense of purpose allowed students to better manage pressure and performed better. Schools need to address the trend that civic engagement is decreasing because society has prioritized personal achievement over helping others (Spencer et al., 2018).

Negative strategies for coping with stress

Poor management of stress can have a negative effect on mental health and academic success (Leonard et al., 2015).  When students disengage, avoid or deny work as a way of coping, it has a clear effect on their academic success (Arsenio & Loria, 2014). Academic stress and lower GPA’s are both reported in adolescents who use disengaged coping methods such as avoidance and substance abuse. One study found that the greater a student disengaged as a coping mechanism, the lower their GPA was (Arsenio & Loria, 2014).

Students who use alcohol or drugs as a coping mechanism are likelier to have depression or anxiety (Suldo, Shaunessy, & Hardesty, 2008).  For some students, substance use wasn’t seen as a negative coping method because it relieved stress and was a reward for working hard (Leonard, Gwadz, Ritchie, Linick, Clelend, Elliot, & Grethel, 2015). Regardless of its intended use, substance use is linked to depression and anxiety and is proven to actually exacerbate stress levels (Leonard et al., 2015). 

Where students can find positive support 

Families can be both a positive influence and can play a negative role in increasing stress by putting pressure on students (Leonard et al., 2015). Family support and involvement can reduce feelings of high academic expectations that would lead to low academic performance (D. Kaplan, Liu, H. Kaplan, 2005). Family, and how students communicate with family can help a lot with student stress levels and is a great coping strategy (Suldo, Shaunessy, & Hardesty, 2008). Effects of stress and high expectations can be reversed through positive coping such as high levels of family support and parental involvement (D. Kaplan, Liu, H. Kaplan, 2005).

Emotional health as a youth is most important for life satisfaction, but that is contradictory to what is valued, which is income and academic achievement. Adults can help by making mental health a priority to improve life satisfaction in the future. Students are looking at adults to set expectations and be good examples. School is the perfect place to set that example and establish meaningful self-purpose and purpose-driven activity (Spencer et al., 2018). 

Conclusion

The pervasive culture of stress in independent schools is having a lasting effect on our students. Independent schools have high levels of chronic stress in comparison to other school environments because of the high expectation that students will perform. Not only do upper-middle-class families emphasize academic excellence in comparison to other socio-economic status families, but there is increased pressure for students to get into good colleges from the schools themselves because the school's prestige is impacted by student’s attrition rates to elite universities (Lyman & Luthar, 2014). The impact of stress can directly affect student learning and poor academic performance, but it can also affect feelings of life satisfaction in the future. There have also been studies done that show the cognitive effect of stress on the developing adolescent brain that has potentially detrimental side effects for the future (Romeo, 2013). Overall, independent schools should be working much harder to reduce workload stress, teach positive coping mechanisms, and involve families more in support of their children. Family support plays a key role in students feeling like they have the mechanisms to cope with stress and to reverse the negative effects of stress to avoid long term effects. If what Spencer said was true and stress and pressure are expected and unable to change, then independent schools need to be doing a better job teaching positive coping skills and educating our students and families on the long term effects if it goes untreated (2018).

References 

Burger, K., & Samuel, R. (2017). The Role of Perceived Stress and Self-Efficacy in Young People’s Life Satisfaction: A Longitudinal Study. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 46(1), 78-90. doi:10.1007/s10964-016-0608-x

Flett, G. L., Hewitt, P. L., Besser, A., Su, C., Vaillancourt, T., Boucher, D., . . . Gale, O. (2016). The Child–Adolescent Perfectionism Scale:Development, Psychometric Properties, and Associations With Stress, Distress, and Psychiatric Symptoms. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 34(7), 634-652. doi:10.1177/0734282916651381

Kaplan, D. S., Liu, R. X., & Kaplan, H. B. (2005). School related stress in early adolescence and academic performance three years later: the conditional influence of self expectations. Social Psychology of Education, 8(1), 3-17. doi:10.1007/s11218-004-3129-5

Leonard, N. R., Gwadz, M. V., Ritchie, A., Linick, J. L., Cleland, C. M., Elliott, L., & Grethel, M. (2015). A multi-method exploratory study of stress, coping, and substance use among high school youth in private schools. Frontiers in Psychology, 6(1028). doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01028

Lyman, E. FURTHER EVIDENCE ON THE “COSTS OF PRIVILEGE”: PERFECTIONISM IN HIGH-ACHIEVING YOUTH AT SOCIOECONOMIC EXTREMES Perfectionism in Youth at SES Extremes. Psychology in the schools, 51(9), 913. doi:10.1002/pits.21791

Romeo, R. D. (2013). The Teenage Brain: The Stress Response and the Adolescent Brain. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 22(2), 140-145. doi:10.1177/0963721413475445

Spencer, R., Walsh, J., Liang, B., Mousseau, A. M. D., & Lund, T. J. (2018). Having It All? A Qualitative Examination of Affluent Adolescent Girls’ Perceptions of Stress and Their Quests for Success. Journal of Adolescent Research, 33(1), 3–33. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743558416670990

Suldo, S. M. (04/2008). Relationships among stress, coping, and mental health in high-achieving high school students John Wiley & Sons Inc. doi:10.1002/pits.20300

William F. Arsenio & Samantha Loria (2014) Coping with Negative Emotions: Connections with Adolescents’ Academic Performance and Stress, The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 175:1, 76-90, DOI: 10.1080/00221325.2013.806293