Vol. 3 - 2026
This study specifically examined the prevalent academic stress among lower basic school pupils in Southwestern Nigeria and identified the prominent coping strategies used by lower basic school pupils in urban and rural areas of Southwestern Nigeria to manage academic stress. These were with a view to investigating the academic stress and coping strategies of lower basic school pupils in Southwestern Nigeria. The study adopted the descriptive survey research design. The population for the study comprised all pupils in basic schools in Southwestern Nigeria. The sample consisted of 1080 pupils from Basic Three classes. The multistage sampling procedure was used to select samples for the study. Three states were selected from six states in Southwestern Nigeria, using a simple random sampling technique. In the selected states, one Senatorial District was randomly selected. In each Senatorial District, three Local Government Areas were selected using a simple random sampling technique. In each of the LGAs, six schools were purposively selected (three from rural and three from urban areas). In all, 18 schools (nine from rural and nine from urban areas) were selected through the simple random sampling technique in each senatorial district making a total of 54 schools in all. From each of the schools, 20 pupils were engaged making a total of 1080 pupils. One research instrument was used to collect data for the study; the Pupils’ Academic Stress Coping Strategy Questionnaire (PASCSQ). The data collected were analysed using mean and standard deviation. The results showed that the prevalent academic stress among lower basic school pupils in Southwestern Nigeria was academic expectation in the urban (x ̅= 2.65) and rural (x ̅=2.39) areas respectively. Prominent coping strategies used by lower basic school pupils in Southwestern Nigeria were problem-focused in the urban ( x ̅= 2.68) and rural (x ̅=2.64) areas respectively. The problem-focused academic stress coping strategy included preparing well for tests and examinations, planning to pass all the subjects, and having a timetable for reading all the subjects. The study concluded that while problem-focused and meaning-focused coping strategies influence the academic stress of lower basic school pupils, emotion-focused and social-focused strategies did not.
Stress, Academic Stress, Coping Strategies, Pupils
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