Interaction with online social networks can provide instantaneous social feedback and increase our sense of short-term self-esteem, particularly if we are sharing something positive that has happened in our lives. However, in response to stressful events we feel more satisfaction with in-person social support – be it from close peers, family, colleagues and university staff.
For students, university offers a unique set of challenges and pressures. For example, tight deadlines coupled with financial or family pressures could decrease the internal resources that are available to help deal with stress. While it is normal to experience stress at university, it's important to employ effective strategies to cope and grow through stressful experiences.
Creating and maintaining social relationships to cope with stress
One way to cope with stress is to develop and maintain effective close social relationships with those around us. We can use social support to help us reflect on negative experiences, and to find novel solutions to problems.
There are a number of actions that you can take to develop strong social support relationships here at Greenwich:
- Engage and build bonds with people on your course or in your office, rather than relying too heavily on online social networking sites.
- Join societies, committees and groups that match your skills and passions. For example, there are plenty of sporting activities at the university.
- Look for voluntary opportunities that match your skills and passions.
- For students, consider applying for internships in areas that interest you.