Student Perspectives of Hope, Stress, and Social Support Provision from Teachers during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Sammanfattning: The present study investigated the relationship between hope, stress, and social support provision from teachers during the COVID-19 pandemic. The participants were 80 students (i.e., 34 males; 46 females) ranging in age from 16 to 22 from multiple gymnasiums across Sweden. The cross-sectional research design collected data using an online survey. Statistical analyses revealed that there was a negative correlation between perceived stress and hope. Social support from teachers was also found to be positively correlated with hope. The subcategories identifying the nature of the social support provision indicated that levels of stress were negatively correlated with appraisal, informational, and instrumental support. Students’ levels of reported hope were found to correlate with appraisal, informational, instrumental, and emotional support. Gender was also found to be associated with stress, where women reported more perceived stress than men. Taken collectively, the study found that students who feel more hope are less stressed perceive more social support provision from teachers. Implications for teachers and limitations of the present study are discussed.