The effect of life skills training on the quality of life and social adjustment of postgraduate students and residents of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences

Abstract

 Background and Objective: Medical students are exposed to high levels of stress and decreased quality of life and social adjustment due to the simultaneous academic pressures, clinical responsibilities, and job expectations. Life skills training can be considered as an effective strategy to increase psychosocial capabilities and improve these indicators. Therefore, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of life skills training on quality of life and social adjustment of postgraduate students and residents of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences.

Methods: This study was applied in terms of purpose and semi-experimental research with a pre-test and post-test design with a control group in terms of method. Its statistical population consisted of all postgraduate students and residents of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences, totaling 1665 people. Due to the semi-experimental nature of the study, 40 people (20 in the experimental group and 20 in the control group) were selected as samples using simple random sampling. The World Health Organization Quality of Life Questionnaire with 26 questions and the Bell Social Adjustment Questionnaire (1961) with 32 questions were used to collect data. The validity and reliability of the instruments were confirmed. The multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) test was used to analyze the data.

Results: Life skills training has a significant impact on the quality of life and social adaptation of postgraduate students and assistants of the University of Medical Sciences, and the impact of life skills training on the quality of life is (0.204) and social adaptation (0.305). Also, teaching life skills has a greater effect on the social adaptation of post-graduate students and assistants of the University of Medical Sciences.

Conclusion: Life skills training has improved the quality of life and social adjustment of postgraduate students and residents of the University of Medical Sciences. Therefore, including life skills training programs in the educational programs of medical students, especially in postgraduate and resident courses, can be recommended as an effective solution to promote mental health, improve social functioning, and increase their coping abilities against academic and career pressures.