Managing Stress with Adaptive Coping: Unveiling the Positive and Negative Impacts on College Students’ Academic Engagement
Yirong Guo & Zi Yang
Abstract
This paper explores the influence of adaptive coping strategies on college students’ intrinsic motivation and academic engagement, drawing on evidence from two studies. Study 1 involved a large-scale questionnaire survey of Chinese college students using the field survey method. This study employed a moderated mediation model to examine the relationship between stress, adaptive coping, intrinsic motivation, and academic engagement. The results indicate that adaptive coping strategies play a crucial role in mitigating, or even reversing, the adverse effects of stress on academic engagement. Study 2 used an intervention methodology to triangulate the findings of Study 1 and explore how adaptive coping strategies enhance college students’ intrinsic motivation and academic engagement. The results of Study 2 further confirm the importance of effective coping strategies in addressing stress-related challenges faced by university students. Additionally, both studies reveal the mediating role of intrinsic motivation in the relationship between stress and academic engagement, highlighting an indirect pathway from stress to academic engagement. Overall, this paper provides an in-depth understanding of the complex and dynamic interactions between stress, adaptive coping strategies, intrinsic motivation, and academic engagement. The findings offer valuable insights into effective strategies for addressing the stress-related challenges faced by university students, ultimately contributing to their academic success and well-being.
The Asia-Pacific Education Researcher, Published: 18 September 2025
