Stressors and Coping Strategies among Vietnamese Medical Students: A Study in a Southern Medical University

Stress among medical students adversely affects academic performance and mental health. Understanding the main stressors, coping strategies, and stress-associated factors is essential for developing effective interventions. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 1,387 full-time medical students at Can Tho University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Vietnam to investigate the stressors, coping strategies, and factors associated with stress among medical students. Stressors were assessed using the Medical Student Stressor Questionnaire, and coping strategies were evaluated with the Brief COPE. Independent t-tests, Pearson correlation, and multivariate linear regression were employed for data analysis. The results showed that 85.2% of students experienced moderate to severe stress, predominantly due to academic-related stressors (ARS: 2.44±0.82), followed by group activityrelated stressors (GARS: 1.96±0.92). Clinical students reported significantly higher stress level in ARS (p = 0.020) and GARS (p = 0.029), while preclinical students experienced higher social-related stress (SRS: p = 0.001). Emotion-focused strategies, particularly positive reframing (6.20±1.72) and acceptance (6.33±1.74), were most commonly used. Passive or avoidant strategies, such as selfblame and behavioural disengagement, were strongly associated with higher stress scores (β = 0.238, p < 0.001). Additionally, problem-focused strategies (β = 0.087, p < 0.001) and female gender (β = 0.145, p < 0.001) were independently linked to higher stress. Stress among medical students is strongly influenced by academic and group activity-related stressors, maladaptive coping strategies, and female gender. Interventions should focus on addressing these factors while promoting adaptive coping mechanisms to help alleviate stress levels.