Coping with Stress

Mr. Williams should address the stressful concerns of his students that arise from gun violence incidence in an open conversation. For instance, he may organize a session to answer any arising questions from the students. This may entail explaining to them about what has been reported concerning the incident, and the ramifications associated. Besides, students who seem critically traumatized should receive immediate counselling (Ashford, 1988). Nevertheless, teachers may inform that gun violence is prevalent in the nation, and outline the precautionary strategies to keep away from the violence. He may also appeal to the students to participate in the antiviolence programs and conform to various safety regulations.

According to McCarthy (2016), the urge to fulfil one’s deepest desires may lead to a change in attitudes and consequently, behaviors. Therefore, students will want to know more about gun violence. Besides, the National Rifle Association seems unrelenting in the advocacy for gun rights (Bhatia, 2019). Making students understand the realities of gun violence, social impacts, and legal implications increase student’s awareness of the current trends and thus foster their coping with stress.

The open conversations and counselling must appreciate the behavioral changes in students. For instance, students will be more inquisitive, because they look up to someone they can trust (Alvord, Uchino & Wright, 2019). Teachers must be confident to influence the attitudes of the students through social learning. For instance, if they as “Why did this happen?” they looking for hints concerning what can cause a similar situation in the school. This question requires depicting the circumstances that led to the violence and closing with possible strategies that could have prevented the shooting.

Nevertheless, the two stress-coping strategies outlined are not intrinsically successful. It is the responsibility of an individual to work towards coping with stress and avoiding violence. For instance, while an open talk may clear the concerns and doubts of most students, some may end up with even more fears and increased stress. Also, counselling may escalate the alarm level of the situation in the whole school, despite helping those counselled. 

References

Alvord, M., Uchino, B., & Wright, V. (2019). Manage stress: Strengthen your support network. Retrieved 10 July 2020, from https://www.apa.org/topics/manage-stress-social-support

Ashford, S. (1988). Individual Strategies for Coping with Stress during Organizational Transitions. The Journal Of Applied Behavioral Science, 24(1), 19-36. doi: 10.1177/0021886388241005

Bhatia, R. (2019). Guns, Lies, and Fear – Center for American Progress. Retrieved 10 July 2020, from https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/guns-crime/reports/2019/04/24/468951/guns-lies-fear/

McCarthy, C. J., DeLisi, M., Getzfeld, A. R., McCarthy, C. J., Moss-King, D. A.,

Mossler, R., Privitera, G. J., Spence, C., Walker, J. D., Weinberg, R. S., & Youssef-Morgan, C. M. (2016). Introduction to applied behavioral science [Electronic version]. Retrieved from https://content.ashford.edu