Manlig och kvinnlig stress, finns det? : En kvalitativ jämförande studie om universitetsstudenters hantering av stress

Sammanfattning: In recent years, stress has become one of the fastest growing societal problems. According to previous researches women tend to be exposed at a higher risk of developing stress-related illnesses than men. The purpose of our study is to investigate through qualitative semi-structured interviews how gender differences in the experience and management of stress are expressed among university students at Örebro University. The study has three different questions designed to answer the purpose, about management, experience, and gender differences. We have analyzed our empirical material using Bourdieu's theories about the masculine domination and habitus. Previous research in the field shows that women tend to feel more stressed but also, that they handle stress in a different way, more emotionally than men. However, one study shows that women, regardless of strategy, tend to handle stress more than men in general. The result of this study was similar to previous research, that women feel more stressed and seem more aware of how they handle stress and the feelings around it. Our female respondents showed a clear pattern that they managed stress through emotional support, but also throught physical activity. The latter which is considered more stereotypical for a man.