Association of Family Support in Coping with Medical Entry-Test Failure Stress with their educational engagement in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa-Pakistan

Abstract

Admission to medical colleges is a major challenge for higher secondary school students. Parental and societal expectations, and fear of embarrassment lead to stress and depression. This study examines how social support help students deal with stress of failing National Medical and Dental College Admission (NMDCAT) Test in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa-Pakistan. 101 undergraduate students from various faculties of University of Peshawar participated in this quantitative research. Based on Lazarus and Folkman’s Stress and Coping Theory, this study shows how the psychological impact of medical entry test failure is managed by support systems like family. Data was collected through a 5-point Likert scale questionnaire (from 0 = strongly agree to 5 = strongly disagree). The association of independent variable (family support in coping with entry-test failure) and dependent variable (educational engagement) was tested using a Chi-Square test. Findings showed that educational engagement had significant association with family support in stress management (p = 0.020), family understanding of different problems (P = 0.025), encouragement from family (P = 0.049), and family as the greatest source of support in coping with entry-test failure stress (P = 0.028). Results emphasized family support as key to managing stress, overcoming academic setbacks and engagement in alternate educational activities for students. Motivation, encouragement, and emotional support, which majorly comes from family, helped positive educational engagement of students. Engagement in other educational fields also helps overcome the phase of high stress due to failure in entry test.