Background: Postgraduate studies often entail significant stress, which can profoundly affect students' well-being and academic performance. The supervisor-postgraduate relationship plays a pivotal role in shaping stress levels among postgraduate students. This study investigates the mediating role of self-efficacy and the moderating influence of psychological resilience in the link between supervisor-postgraduate relationships and perceived stress in postgraduate students.

Methods: This study employed a cross-sectional research design, conducting a survey among 609 postgraduate students selected through random sampling. The participants, aged between 20 and 53 years (M = 25.14, SD = 3.63), included 265 males and 344 females from various academic stages. Data were collected using validated scales to measure the supervisor-postgraduate relationship, perceived stress, self-efficacy, and psychological resilience. The moderated mediation model analysis was conducted to examine the hypothesized relationships and effects, utilizing SPSS with Hayes' PROCESS macro to validate the statistical interactions.

Results: The results indicated a significant negative association between the supervisor-postgraduate relationship and perceived stress (β=-0.27, p < 0.01), with self-efficacy partially mediating this relationship (β=-0.14, p < 0.01). Additionally, psychological resilience moderated both the direct effect of the supervisor-postgraduate relationship on perceived stress and the indirect effect via self-efficacy (interaction effect β=-0.10, p < 0.01). These findings underscore the roles of self-efficacy and psychological resilience in reducing stress among postgraduate students, highlighting the importance of supportive supervisory relationships.

Conclusions: These findings underscore the critical importance of supportive supervisor-postgraduate relationships and highlight the roles of self-efficacy and resilience in alleviating stress among postgraduate students. This study offers valuable insights for cultivating positive supervisor-postgraduate relationships and enhancing well-being within postgraduate education.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s40359-024-02251-1DOI Listing
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11662790PMC

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

supervisor-postgraduate relationship
16
perceived stress
16
relationship perceived
12
psychological resilience
12
mediating role
8
role self-efficacy
8
self-efficacy moderating
8
postgraduate students
8
stress
6
supervisor-postgraduate
5

Similar Publications

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!