Draft 1: We Architects cannot "Stress" this Enough

This topic submitted by Brandon Tartaglia, Alex Hochstetler, Drew Schreiner, Evin Teska, Lindsay Schmid ( alexhochstetler@hotmail.com ) on 10/7/04 .

Natural Systems 1 Syllabus---Western Program---Miami University

Introduction
The purpose of our project is to determine if there are different levels and types of stress between the various grades of Architecture students at Miami University. Due to our personal engagement in the Architecture program, we have observed significant differences in behavior and stress levels between freshmen and students farther along in the program. This observation has lead us to question if there is a measurable difference in stress levels between each grade of Architecture students and what these differences can be attributed to. This question has arisen because every member of our group has felt considerable amounts of stress throughout the first few weeks of school. Therefore, our goal is to determine how our stress will fluctuate during the course of the next four years in the Architecture major. To accomplish this we will survey a specified number of freshmen and sophomore Architecture majors to determine their stress levels and its possible causes.
Our hypothesis is that freshmen Architecture students at Miami University will experience higher levels of stress throughout their first year in the program. Although we believe that the sophomore students have a greater workload and are expected to perform at higher levels, we feel that they will be more adept at dealing with their stress levels. This could be due to the fact that they have adjusted to the high demands of the program through experience. As freshmen, we are unaware of the strong requirements and workload assigned on a regular basis. Learning how to cope with the new environment causes emotions to change dramatically. Also, by being new students, we have not yet fully adapted to the new ways of dealing with the emotions that lead to stress. Finally, freshmen no longer have a strong support system that they are familiar with, whether it is based on family or friends and so are left to try and find a path on their own.

Background Information
What is stress? Stress is the body's reaction to the strain placed on it (Arkel, 1). There are many different types of stressors, particularly in college. Students may worry about homework, relationships, financial burdens, and family (The National Institute of Mental Health, 1). People will rate their levels of stress differently, even if the exact same strain is placed on everyone. It's all how the individual handles it. This strain may come from physical, emotional, environmental, or chemical factors. Stress is a normal thing to experience during college and
should be expected. However, chronic stress should not be ignored because it is a very serious matter. Chronic stress is caused when the body overproduces cortisol and adrenaline, the two stress hormones. If a person ignores stress, these hormones can become overwhelming, causing
illness. If ignored long enough, chronic stress can cause depression, high blood pressure, headaches, acne, loss of sleep, and more (Arkel, 1-2).
Due to the fact that stress occurs on all different levels, it can be difficult to detect. There are some common symptoms that show up in the majority of people however. Often, people become irritated, have an increased heart rate, develop clammy hands, and have an upset stomach (U.S. National Library of Medicine, 2). These symptoms can be relieved with fairly simple solutions. Exercise, eating nutritious foods daily, and talking with supportive friends are all simple ways to help ease high stress levels (AACAP, 2).
Our specific research question and research should show how stress affects a person's health in general. The research should support how stress and environmental factors can cause extreme behavioral changes in individuals. These changes can cause issues that are detrimental to the person's health.

Research Design
As stated in the introduction, we will be studying the difference in stress levels between first-year and second-year Architecture majors at Miami University. In order to analyze each group's stress level, we will use a carefully constructed survey. As freshmen in the Architecture program, we have found that factors such as sleep, diet, sports, exercise, class time, relationships, and social time have all lead to our own feelings of stress, and these factors will be addressed on the survey. We will survey thirty students from each of the two grade levels. Since all freshmen and sophomore Architecture students are required to take a studio class, where they often spend much of their time, our survey will be conducted there.
The experiment will be broken into three stages. We will survey the students once every other week for five weeks. This repetition will be used to analyze changes in the student's stress levels as the semester progresses. The same students that were first surveyed will be surveyed again to keep the results accurate. Since there are very few total Architecture majors at Miami University, a sample size of at most thirty students and at least twenty-five from each grade will be taken which will be large enough to make conclusions about the entire grade.
Also, to get a better understanding of what a normal stress level is indicative of, we will use the same survey to question a group of fifty other individuals of any grade taken at random from the student body. By analyzing their responses we hope to create a sense of what standard stress is like against which we can test our two groups of Architecture students. The fifty students that we survey will serve as our control throughout the experiment.

Stress Survey

1. Do you currently feel stressed?___________

2. On a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being low stress and 10 being high, what is your

stress level, if any? ___________

3. How many hours of sleep do you get during an average five-day school week?__________

4. How many hours of sleep do you get during an average weekend?__________

5. How many meals do you eat on an average day?__________

6. On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being unhealthy and 5 being healthy, how are your eating habits?_________

7. How many showers do you take during an average five-day school week?_________

8. How many showers do you take during an average weekend? _________

9. How many hours are you in class or studio during an average five-day school week?__________

10. How many hours are you in class or studio during an average weekend? __________

11. Do you ever skip classes to do schoolwork or to get sleep? If so, how often?_________

12. On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being not often 5 being very often, how much do you worry about your grades, your financial situation, or your job?_________

13. On a scale of 1 to 5, 1 being "No I am a hermit" and 5 being "Yes I am a party animal," do you feel like you have an active social life?__________

14. If you have a steady boyfriend or girlfriend, how often do you converse with/see him or her?_________

15. Do you participate in any clubs or sports outside of class? If so, how many?__________

16. If you do participate in clubs or sports, how many hours do you spend participating per week? __________

Materials and Methods
Since we will use a survey to conduct our experiment, there will very few actual materials. The most important materials we will have are our survey and a total of sixty students from the freshmen and sophomore Architecture classes as well as our fifty students that comprise our control group. The survey will be carefully constructed to ask specific questions relating to stress. We will ask students about their own feelings of stress and also about possible factors that lead to those feelings of stress. Through early observation into the project, we have determined that there are thirty students in the sophomore class. Therefore, since they are the limiting variable we will attempt to survey their entire student body as well as an equal number of freshmen Architecture students. It is important that we record the exact number of students from each class that we survey, as well as the names of each person in order to keep our data as accurate as possible. Much of the experiment includes the use of statistics, so proper computing and calculating equipment will be used.
Once all of the surveys have been completed, the data will be analyzed and compared to our control in order to determine which grade level has more symptoms of stress. The data will be analyzed through statistical methods, which include a series of t-tests and graphical comparisons. To do this, a data sheet will be constructed that records the exact individual numerical values for each question from the survey as well as the class averages and total averages. This data sheet will help our group to organize the surveyed data, and to see stronger trends in the factors that cause stress.
In order to get the class involved in the project, we will have them help with the surveying of the control group at the Shriver Center. Also, we will have the rest of the class help compile the data from the individual answers into graph form so they can be analyzed through t-tests for each individual question. All of this information together will help us discern any trends or overall similarities or differences between the two groups and allow us to alternately determine who suffers from the most stress.
Once both sets of surveys have been completed, and the data sheets have been filled out, our group will conclude on which group, freshmen or sophomores, have more symptoms of stress. By analyzing averages such as sleep time, meals per week, showers per week, class time, social time, how many participate in sports or have a girlfriend or boyfriend, we should be able to get an accurate determination of which grade level has more stress, and what causes it.

Data Sheets
Data Table for Individual Responses
Data Table for Average of all Responses

Timeline
Week 1 (October 10 Ð October 17): Our group will survey the thirty freshmen and thirty sophomores based on our questionnaire that will be handed out to them during their studio classes.

Week 2 (October 18 Ð October 24): We will survey the fifty random students for our control group. We will then analyze this survey to find out what level of stress an average college student at Miami University experiences. Also, we will compile our information onto data sheets and perform the first round of analytic t-tests for our initial survey.

Week 3 (October 25 Ð October 31): Our group will perform our second survey of the thirty freshmen and sophomores, using the same survey as was used earlier. This survey will help to show if any changes have taken place in the stress levels of freshmen, sophomores, or both.

Week 4 (November 1 Ð November 7): Here, we will again compile our information onto data sheets and perform another round of t-tests comparing that individual rounds' studies, but shall also then compare our results from the first week to that of the third weeks'.

Week 5 (November 8 Ð November 14): For this week, we will take our last survey of the thirty freshmen and thirty sophomores using the same questionnaire as before and look for any noticeable changes or differences from earlier tests.

Week 6 (November 15 Ð November 21): At this point, we will complete the last round of data sheets and again do a t-test for that individual weeks' results. After this, we will analyze the third round of results with those from the last two and look at our results as a whole. From this, we will draw our final conclusions and start preparing to put our research project on-line.

Week 7 (November 29 Ð December 5): With the conclusion of our research, we will prepare the last of our results and conclusions and finish transferring the information into electronic form and complete the design of our website. After we finish any last beautification details, the project will be completed and ready for submission.

Works Cited
Adams, Jenni. Stress: A New Postive Approach. Great Britain: Billing Limited, 1989.
-This book serves as an explanation on how to live and release stress. It is also shows how to use stress in a positive manner
such as with food, breathing, exercises. With this information, we can will know the possibilities as to one a specific person is
more stressed than another.
American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. "Helping Teenagers with Stress." 2 Jan. 2004. The U.S. National Library
of Medicine. 5 Oct. 2004.
-This website provides clinical studies of stress that explains new and different information concerning stress in teenagers. It
also dicusses the different possibilities to deal with stress.
Arkel, Amy Van,. and Katie Boutott. University of Iowa Student Health Service. "Are You Stressed Out?" December 2003. 1 Oct.
2004.
-This website defines stress in a college atmoshere, and how stress affects students physically and emotionally. Different
techiniques are also offerend in dealing with stress.
Blair, Glenn M., and Jones, Stewart R. Psychology of Adolescence for Teachers. New York: The Micmillan Company, 1965.
-This book may give us a glimpse of the teachers' point of view as to how they deal with the classroom atmosphere. It helps
us to understand the factors they consider in teaching, how hard to press their students academically, and how to realize the
tension in the classroom. This gives them insight into how much stress are they willing to allow their students to experience.
Dacey, John S. Adult Development. Glenview, Illinois: Scott Foresman and Company, 1982.
-We choose this book to understand the difference between an adult and child and how they deal with stress. It shows the
stages of life after adolescence and how they have to continually experience maturity lessons in life.
Dantzer, Robert., and Emmanuelle E. Wollman. Cytokines, Stress, and Depression. Vol. 461. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum
Publishers, 1999.
-This is a medical book that explains the biological process of the brain and body coping with stress, and the effects on the
body. This book will give our group an understanding of the brain functions with stress.
Matheny, Kenneth B., and Richard J. Riordan. Stress and Strategies for Lifestyle Management. Altanta, Georgia: Georgia State
University Business Press, 1992.
-This is a book that explores the factors of stress. It shows causes, factors, and prevention that someone would want in
dealing with stress. This book gives us an understanding on how to approach the problems of stress.
Mc Ewen, Bruce S. "Early life influences on life-long patterns of behavior and health." Mental Retardation and Developmental
Disabilities Reaseard Reviews. Feb. 2003. 1 Oct. 2004. login.aspxdirect=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,uid&db=pbh&an=11773227>
-This article discusses the effects of stress on the brain and immune system. It also dicusses the stress disorder (PTSD) which
could give us insight to more possibilities as to why a student is so stressed. The student may have a mental dissorder that
hasn't been discovered.
Mind Tools Ltd. "Helping you to think your way to an excellent life!" 10 Jan. 1998. 1 Oct. 2004. mtsite/smpage.html>
-This website goes into detail about understanding stress, finding the best level of stress for someone, and techniques to
dealing with stress. These three catagories are significant to understanding and relating it to our study.
Rowh, Mark. Coping with Stress In College: Everything Students Need to Know to Mange the Pressures of College Life. New
York: College Board Publications, 1989.
-Discussed in this book are typical stresses that a student may experience in college such as financial, relationship, work load,
and support structure. It also shows how to cope and overcome the college stresses. This book will help us identify the
reasons a student is stressed, and it may make suggestions as to why older students are less stressed than younger students.
Schore, Allan N. "Effects of a Secure Attachment Relationship of Right Brain Development, affect Recognition and Child Mental
Health. Infant Mental Health Journal. Jan 2001. 1 Oct. 2004. direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,uid&db=pbh&an=11772285>
-The knowledge of the brain is very important in understanding the effects of stress. This article dicusses the structure and
function of the brain.
Schultz, Edward W Ph.D,. and Charles M. Heuchert, Ph.d. Child Stress and the School Experience. New York: Human Sciences
Press Inc., 1983.
-This source discusses the different types of stress of children and their reactions to different situations of stress and the
learning experiences that a child goes through. This book is aimed to help us understand the learning cycle a person goes
through during childhood.
"Significant Stress in Adolescence May Change the Brain." March 2004. 1 Oct. 2004. Significant Stress Link
-This article will help us determine the damage that stress may cause to college students. The types and causes of damage
can give us a clearer view as to what these stress factors can be and how they work.
Sime, Wesley E. "Stress Management: A Review of Principles." June 1997. 1 Oct. 2004.
-This website is created by an acredited psychological doctor. He explores all the aspects of stress, which will become
useful in understanding different areas where stress occurs.
The National Institute of Mental Health. "What do these Students have in Common?" 9 April 2004. 1 Oct 2004.

-This website gave different symptoms and stress factors that college students expericence. It also dicusses various ways to
detect stress in students and how to cope with the transition a college student goes through. This information will be related
to our study of students and their stress issues.
Vermetten, Eric. "Circuits and system in stress." Depression and Anxiety. 2002. 1 Oct 2004. login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=cookie,ip,url,uid&db=pbh&an=11773227>
-This article revolves mainly around a careful observation of the brain and its functions, as well as how they react and change
under stressful situations. This article has a perticular focus on post-traumatic stress disorder.
Wallenstein, Gene Ph.D. Mind Stress and Emotions: The New Science of Mood. Boston: Commonwealth Press, 2003.
-This book examines our environment as well as genetic and biological conditions which determine our emotions and moods.
This book will help us understand the biological implications that lies behind stress.

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