By: Peyton House

I’m sure you have heard the saying “College will be the best time of your life.”

As the youngest of three girls, I have been told this my whole life. However, college has been quite the opposite. I found myself stressing over everything from my social life to my academics, forgetting about taking care of my personal well-being.

A tight family is what often keeps us strong during the toughest of times. Having a strong family bond and maintaining a relationship with my parents is what got me through my first-semester of college. Starting fresh, alone, with no familiarity is a very daunting thing for most first-year college students and the importance of keeping up with family at home may be just what you need to improve your stress.

Lindsey Aloia from Pennsylvania State University and Claire Strutzenberg from University of Arkansas, wanted to know how both family cohesion and relational maintenance strategies impacted first-year students’ stress mentally, academically and socially. Because college is such an important aspect of young adults’ lives, it is important to understand the factors that improve the transition from living at home to living independently.

The researchers conducted a study at a southern university where they surveyed 198 students, over the age of 18 years, at the end of their first semester. The students were asked questions about family cohesion which refers to the emotional connectedness we have with our family members. They were also asked about their relational maintenance strategies which refer to the strategies and behaviors students use in order to maintain their relationships with their parents. These behaviors include being open with your loved ones, keeping a positive attitude, giving or receiving daily assurances, sharing similar interests, and doing tasks together. Lastly, the researchers measured students’ stress levels mentally, socially and academically to see how both family cohesion and relational maintenance strategies affected them.

The researchers found that family cohesion plays a significantly positive role in college students’ personal health mentally, socially and academically. The study showed that family cohesion helps students focus more and benefits students’ performance in the classroom. These benefits allowed students to succeed not just in the classroom but they also helped students deal with stress when it came to social situations. Therefore, having good family support is what allowed students to thrive in all three of those areas, particularly mentally, during their first-year of college.

When it comes to relational maintenance strategies, the researchers identified that the more open students were with their parents and the more shared interests that were present, the less stressed they felt. In contradiction, the students who worked together with parents and got lots of positive encouragement from them, reported high levels of being more stressed. Therefore, encouragement and help from parents can negatively impact students’ mental health during their first semester of college. The researchers speculated that parents encouraging and being too involved may be viewed by students as pressure to succeed. To avoid this, first-year students would likely benefit from parents giving them more space and being cautious about the amount of encouragement they’re giving.

So how can you maintain these relationships in your first year away in college?

Even if you are stressed about an upcoming test or final, just taking the time to call a family member while folding laundry or doing the dishes helps you de-stress in a very effortless way. This reduces stress without having to take ten minutes out of your busy day to call them. I found this one of the most important strategies to reduce my stress.

So the next time you are overwhelmed with what is going on in school or in your social life, think about the ways that you can take care of yourself with these strategies. Additionally, keeping a strong and connected relationship with your family members, whether that is a parent or close sibling, can help take your mind off of the things around you.

Just say a simple hello! It can prevent even the slightest amount of stress you’re feeling. Trust me I know 🙂