This project included research and evaluation on the correlation between anxiety, stress, and alcohol consumption among college students. In addition, the project included a needs assessment for starting a new social media-based support group to address mental health needs on campus and development of alternative coping mechanisms for anxiety and stress management in an effort to reduce alcohol consumption among UCA students. Finally, the proposal was presented to the University of Central Arkansas’ Office of Student Wellness & Development director, Jenna Davidson.

1. A Program Plan Proposal For The Development Of:
Anxiety, Alcohol, and Stress Management Among College Students
C. Brown
University of Central Arkansas

2. 2
Table of Contents
Introduction: Mission, Goals, & Objectives………………………………………………………………………3
Rationale……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………4-6
Logic Model………………………………………………………………………………………………………………......7
Advertisement………………………………………………………………………………………………………………8
Theoretical Framework…………………………………………………………………………………………….9-10
Health Believe Model (HBM)………………………………………………………………………………………...11
Implementation Plan (Personnel, Facilities, Equipment, Supplies)…………………………………12
Timeline & Training……………………………………………………………………………………………………..13
Marketing Plan………………………………………………………………………………………………………..14-15
Evaluation Plan…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….16
Evaluation Survey…………………………………………………………………………………………………………17
Pre/Post-Test Assessment…………………………………………………………………………………………….18
Evaluation Checklist……………………………………………………………………………………………………...19
Marketing Tool/Advertisement Flyer…………………………………………………………………………….20
References ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………...21-22

3. 3
Introduction: Missions, Goals & Objectives
MissionStatement: Our mission statement is to improve the knowledge and mental health of
college students through appropriate stress and anxiety techniques, that promote healthy-lifestyle
coping strategies.
Goal I: By January 2017, program planners will fully develop a Facebook group to decrease
stress of UCA’s college students, who will be given a pre and post test.
Objective I: Increase healthy coping mechanisms by the following, and will be assessed through
a survey:
-Being able to list and recognize healthy coping mechanisms.
-Knowledge of how much sleep they need to decrease stress.
-Students should know how much exercise they need to reduce their personal stress.
-Students can track their sleep schedule to see improvement.
-Students can track the amount of exercise weekly.
-Students can list and recognize healthy coping mechanisms
-The result, students will have decreased stress and experience relief.
Objective II: Program planners will advertise the Facebook online chat forum by posting 200
pre-made flyers at the start of the spring semester.
Objective III: By the end December 2017, UCA students will be able to list healthy coping
mechanisms and three (3) unhealthy coping mechanisms through an administered survey.
Evaluation Method: Survey, Pre/Post test, Checklist
Objective: Planners will create a Facebook group before the start of the semester, and post 200
flyers throughout UCA’s campus, before the start of classes.
Objective: Complete the Evaluation Method Checklist

4. 4
A Rationale For The Development Of:
Anxiety, Alcohol, and Stress Management Among College Students
The topic of mental health among college students covers a variety of issues that range
from mild to severely debilitating in nature. Stress and anxiety, specifically, are two of the most
common illnesses that affect college students. The National Alliance of Mental Illness (2016),
reports 37 percent of students diagnosed with a mental illness drop out of school between the
ages of 14-21 (National Alliance on Mental Illness, 2016).
According to a Canadian-led research study published in the Journal of Alcohol and
Alcoholism (2015), there is a correlation between acute stress in U.S. college students and binge
drinking, “a highly dangerous drunkenness-inducing pattern of short-term alcohol consumption.”
Excessive alcohol use poses a personal and public health risk and an increases likelihood of
bodily harm, physical/sexual assault, and alcohol poisoning (Magrys & Olmstead, 2015).
Psychologists and other mental health professionals estimate 40% of college students in the U.S.
binge drink at least once in a two-week time period ("College Students Under Stress Turn to
Alcohol", 2015).
Social media has been shown to decrease stress, and thus, alcohol consumption in
college-aged women according to a Pew research study released by the Washington Post (2016).
Keith Hampton of Rutgers University attributes three things to this phenomenon; 1) “social
media provides a ‘supportive exchange’ (i.e. people feel less stressed because they can stay in
contact with friends and family, and feel that community support”, 2) it is suggested that social
media helps women are to “maintain family and household” relationships, and 3) sharing
positive and/or negative aspects of a woman’s life on social media can result in reduced stress
(Tsukayama, 2015).

5. 5
In order to better assist the University of Central Arkansas (UCA) community, we
propose that the UCA Counseling Center provide online support groups geared towards specific
majors with the help of popular social media sites. By launching this initiative, we hope to help
students learn to adapt and manage their symptoms in order to maintain optimal health and
functionality throughout their college careers, while still being able to lead their daily lives.
In today’s society, there has been an increase in the use of social media among the
younger generations. According to Pew Research Center, social media usage has nearly
increased by tenfold (Perrin, 2015). In order to meet the needs of the UCA student body, it is
crucial to draw their attention to relatable topics that will peak their interest and to assist in their
mental health needs. With the incorporation of social media, students are projected to engage
more actively in support groups with their specific majors in mind and create relationships with
students dealing with anxiety and stress.
With the use of social media to help students that are facing levels of stress and anxiety,
there are several beneficial aspects that can be gained. Students that choose to participate in their
major’s support group will be able to engage with other students that are often in the same
classes. In doing so, students can relate and discuss educational topics that are the cause of stress
and anxiety. Also, students will be able to gain knowledge that encompasses the feeling of
loneliness. According to, Mind for Better Mental Health, loneliness itself is not a mental health
disorder; but individuals dealing with stress and anxiety often experience high levels of
loneliness (“Mind, the mental health charity - help for mental health problems,” 2013). These
individuals often tend to feel as if they are the only ones experiencing the effects of stress and
anxiety. These support groups will help to alleviate the idea that these individuals are alone and

6. 6
facing issues in the dark by themselves. Instead, these students will be able to build connections
with other students who are experiencing the same stress and anxiety.
The success of this program can be determined by the data that has been drawn from
previous studies. ACHA-NCHA, a recent study conducted by the office of Student Wellness and
Development at UCA, showed that students are unlikely to attend an event directed towards
dealing with stress and anxiety. However, the study showed that students yearned for more
information on how to deal with stress and anxiety. With the incorporation of social media, we
would like to see students more engaged in support groups and more likely to benefit from the
idea.
Our program will highlight the need for a student social media outlet via Facebook in
which they feel safe to express their feelings, thoughts, and emotions related to stress, anxiety,
and alcohol use as a coping mechanism. In addition, we hope our program will bring awareness
to the UCA community about the prevalence of alcohol use during times of stress and anxiety. It
will engage college students by allowing access to useful stress management via specialized
Facebook groups geared towards the specific college majors offered at UCA. In doing so, we
will improve the mental health of college students by providing them with healthy coping
mechanisms. Student Health Clinic Staff will facilitate the pages and keep students updated by
posting coping mechanisms online regularly.

7. 7
Logic Model
Resources Activities Outputs Short Term
Outcomes
Long Term
Outcomes
Impact
Staff:
-Volunteers
-Jenna Davidson,
Director of Student
Wellness &
Development
Website
Online Chat
Forums
● Protects
privacy
● Fosters
community
of
participant
Facebook
groups help
identify other
students with
similar levels
of stress
related to
specific
degrees
● Serves to
reach
students
from any
location at
any time
● A live chat
feature
will be
available
during x-
period for
access to
additional
informatio
n and
support.
Knowledge:
-Healthy self-
care,stress,
and anxiety
management
via exercise.
-Healthy
eating habits,
nutritional
information,
and
development
of good sleep
habits.
Skills:
-Encourage
student use of
HPER to
facilitate
healthy and
frequent
exercise
habits.
-Offer
cooking
classes to
motivate
students to
cook healthy
nutritious
meals.
Attitude:
-Keeping
students
motivated
with tutoring
and
mentorship.
● Time-management
skills
●Development of
campus study room
●Decrease
stress/anxiety in
college students
●Healthy coping
mechanisms for
stress related
alcohol
consumption
● Improved
knowledge and
mental health
of college
students
through
appropriate
stress and
anxiety
techniques,
that promote
healthy-
lifestyle
coping
strategies
● Decrease
alcohol use by
teaching stress
and anxiety
management
techniques.

8. 8
Stress, anxiety, and alcohol
For more info, please contact:
The office of Student wellness & development
Jenna Davidson, Director
Student Health Center, Suite 308
501.450.3133
jdavidsoon@uca.edu
Find support here
Are you stressed out?
Are classes causing you anxiety?
If you are struggling with stress-related anxiety, we are here to help.
Join ourconfidentialFacebooksupportgroup. Freeofjudgment, you can talk with like-
minded individuals specific to your college major about stress, anxiety, and how to
manage them without turning to alcohol.

9. 9
Theoretical Framework
Our program has been designed to use the advantage of social media to create
connections between students with similar majors. These social media centered groups will
increase communication between students, as well as create a support group for those dealing
with stress and anxiety. The use of social media will be a more appropriate approach compared
to face to face support groups for coping with stress and anxiety. Students can use it as an
informal and intrusive forum that they are more familiar with, at the leisure of their own time.
With this in mind, we believe that by implementing this program the UCA community will see a
decrease in alcohol-intake during times of stress and/or anxiety inducing events.
The Health Belief Model (HBM) is an appropriate planning tool for the implementation
of our program because of the specific goals chosen for the participants and the approach that the
HBM takes to ensure achievement of these goals. Hochbaum, Rosenstock, and Kegels were all
three social psychologist who developed the Health Belief Model in the early 1950s. The
reasoning behind the formation of this model was due to the failure of a free tuberculosis
screening (Health Belief Model). The HBM uses perceived susceptibility, perceived severity,
perceived barriers, perceived benefits, cues to action, and self efficacy to explain an individual's
predicted path of behavior change(Turner, L. W., Hunt, S. B., DiBrezzo, R., & Jones, C).
Specifically, we are going to look closely at the constructs of perceived benefit, perceived
susceptibility, and perceived barriers in relation to our program.
Perceived benefit is the individual's opinion on how useful or important the new behavior
change is for their personal belief. Often, we see that people are more likely to engage in healthy
behaviors if it means their chances of encountering an unwanted issue related to stress is

10. 10
decreased. Perceived susceptibility is one of the more powerful perceptions that promote people
to adopt a healthy behavior. The greater the risk, the greater the chance is of an individual
choosing to partake in the healthier behavior to decrease the risk. Perceived barriers are obstacles
that specifically affect the individual, preventing them from participating in a program for the
adoption of a positive health behavior. Each of these constructs play an important role in gaining
participants. Our program goal is for these students to move past these negative behavioral
influencers and onto effective stress management.
Previous research using the Health Belief Model determined that college students who
choose to make healthier behaviors have higher self-confidence, are overall happier, and have
more personal satisfaction (Conner, M., & Norman, P. ). With valid research, similar programs
have been conducted that successfully used the Health Belief Model to evaluate stress among
college students, and recognition of common management techniques (Institute of Medicine
(US) Committee on Health and Behavior: Research, P., & Policy, A.). Due to previous success
rates of the Health Belief Model, this gives us solid reasoning in choosing to use this specific
model for the development of our program. Below one can find exactly how we will use the
Health Belief Model to increase the Perceived Benefits of the participants, as well as the
Perceived Susceptibility; and how we will decrease the Perceived Barriers of the participants.

11. 11
Health Belief Model
Perceived Benefits Perceived Susceptibility Perceived Barriers
● Mass email to
students containing
a video link of
testimonies from
students who have
participated in the
FB group.
● Set up a tent on
campus allowing
word of mouth
testimonies of
students who have
participated and
benefited from the
FB group.
● Mass email to students
through Student Health 101
containing statistics on how
stressed college students are.
● Stream a UCA news
broadcast about the negative
consequences that using
alcohol can cause when
students are stressed.
● Flyers in bathroom stalls
with questions pertaining to
‘Are You Stressed?’
● Create a flyer
introducing the
program, where to
find it, and how to
use it.

12. 12
Implementation Plan
Personnel
Who What
Jenna Davidson Information on student classification of majors
Website Coordinator Managing and monitoring post within the social
media account
I.T. Support Staff Deal with website/wifi problems
Volunteers Interact with students on the website
Facilities
Where Why Who
Student Health Center Information on students majors Jenna Davidson
Equipment/Supplies
Equipment(>$500) Supplies(<$500)
Computer-- creation of the major specific
groups on Facebook
Paper-- flyers for advertisement

13. 13
Timeline & Training
*Could Not Insert Without Entire Document Being in Landscape Format*
*Will submit in separate document*

14. 14
Marketing Plan
Product
Our overarching objective is to create a program in which college students, who are
struggling with stress management, to have a healthy and resourceful outlet to connect with their
peers. This will allow students who are facing similar challenges related to stress to build
relationships with like-minded individuals. With the use of Facebook, students will be grouped
according to their majors in hopes of fostering a connection between the types of stress these
students are facing in their respective classes.
Price
Although there is no monetary cost, there must be adequate investment of an individual’s
time in order to see the benefits of this program. Often students are limited for time, but the
benefits will outweigh the barriers by creating a healthy way to manage stress, as well as creating
social connections for students. Along with non-monetary cost, students will have to give up a
unhealthy behavior that they are engaging in with the hope of better managing their stress. Also,
students will display their vulnerability by allowing others to know that they are stressed,
burdened, and worried by opening up and asking for help in dealing with their stress.
Place
Since our program is online based, we do not have a place to call our own. However,
students will be encouraged to seek additional assistance through the Student Health Clinic, as
well as their degree program’s faculty members. The entirety of this program will take place in
the comfort of the students desired location with the use of the Facebook App on their mobile
device, tablet, or computer.

15. 15
Promotion
We will be promoting our program through the use of flyers. Additionally, we will send
out mass emails through UCA Student Services and the university’s “Student Health 101”
publication. Through each of these methods we will be able to reach each and every student and
guide them to a healthy and productive way to cope with stress.

16. 16
Evaluation Plan
Goal I: By January 2017, program planners will fully develop a Facebook group to decrease
stress of UCA’s college students, who will be given a pre and post test.
Objective I: Increase healthy coping mechanisms by the following, and will be assessed through
a survey:
-Being able to list and recognize healthy coping mechanisms.
-Knowledge of how much sleep they need to decrease stress.
-Students should know how much exercise they need to reduce their personal stress.
-Students can track their sleep schedule to see improvement.
-Students can track the amount of exercise weekly.
-Students can list and recognize healthy coping mechanisms
-The result, students will have decreased stress and experience relief.
Objective II: Program planners will advertise the Facebook online chat forum by posting 200
pre-made flyers at the start of the spring semester.
Objective III: By the end December 2017, UCA students will be able to list healthy coping
mechanisms and three (3) unhealthy coping mechanisms through an administered survey.
Evaluation Method: Survey, Pre/Post test, Checklist
Objective IV: Planners will create a Facebook group before the start of the semester, and post
200 flyers throughout UCA’s campus, before the start of classes.
Objective: Complete the Evaluation Method Checklist

17. 17
Goal I Evaluation Survey
1. Overall, how satisfied are you with our program?
2. How useful has this program been to you compared to other programs designed to help
students cope with stress?
3. Overall, do you think this program provided too much networking, too little networking,
or just enough networking?
4. Do you get at least 8 hours of sleep every night? If not, how many hours do you sleep?
5. How many times during the week do you exercise?
6. List healthy coping mechanisms, particularly those that were most beneficial.
7. List three (3) unhealthy coping mechanisms.

18. 18
Goal II Evaluation Pre/Post Test Assessment
Pre-Test
1. What is your ideal response to handling daily stress?
2. How would you rate your current stress level, with 5 being highly stressed and 1 being
little or no stress?
1 2 3 4 5
3. What is your current emotional/mental state? (i.e. depressed, suicidal thoughts, anxiety)
4. What is the primary source for your stress?
5. How likely are you to use alcohol when experiencing stress?
None Highly Unlikely Unlikely Likely Very Likely Highly Likely
Post-Test
1. What is your ideal response to handling daily stress?
2. How would you rate your current stress level, with 5 being highly stressed and 1 being
little or no stress?
1 2 3 4 5
3. What is your current emotional/mental state? (i.e. depressed, suicidal thoughts, anxiety)
4. What is the primary source for your stress?
5. How likely are you to use alcohol when experiencing stress?
None Highly Unlikely Unlikely Likely Very Likely Highly Likely
6. How would you rate your ability to cope with stress since participating in the program?

19. 19
Evaluation Method Checklist
-Creation of Facebook group
-Create flyer
-Print 200 flyers
-Post flyers throughout UCA’s campus

20. 20
Stress, anxiety, and alcohol
For more info, please contact:
The office of Student wellness & development
Jenna Davidson, Director
Student Health Center, Suite 308
501.450.3133
jdavidsoon@uca.edu
Find support here
Are you stressed out?
Are classes causing you anxiety?
If you are struggling with stress-related anxiety, we are here to help.
Join ourconfidentialFacebooksupportgroup. Freeofjudgment, you can talk with like-
minded individuals specific to your college major about stress, anxiety, and how to
manage them without turning to alcohol.

21. 21
References
Conner, M., & Norman, P. (1995). Predicting Health Behaviour: Research and Practice with
Social Cognition Models. Buckingham: Open University Press.
Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Health and Behavior: Research, P., & Policy, A.
(1970). Individuals and Families: Models and Interventions. Retrieved November 29,
2016, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK43749/
Turner, L. W., Hunt, S. B., DiBrezzo, R., & Jones, C. (2004). Design and implementation
of an osteoporosis prevention program using the health belief model. American Journal of
Health Studies, 19(2), 115-121.
Magrys, S., & Olmstead, M. (2015, January 3). Alcohol and Alcoholism. Retrieved November
29, 2016, from https://alcalc.oxfordjournals.org/content/50/2/213
Tsukayama, H. (2015, January 15). Using Facebook and Twitter a lot can actually decrease stress
— if you’re a woman. The Washington Post. Retrieved November 29, 2016, from
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/01/15/using-facebook-and-
twitter-a-lot-can-actually-decrease-stress-if-youre-a-woman/?utm_term=.946e60544507
College Students Under Stress Turn to Alcohol. (2015, April 14). Retrieved November 29, 2016,
from https://www.promises.com/articles/alcoholabuse/college-students-under-stress-turn-
to-alcohol/
Perrin, A. (2015, October 8). Social media usage: 2005-2015. Retrieved September 11, 2016,
from http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/10/08/social-networking-usage-2005-2015/
National Alliance on Mental Illness. (2016). Retrieved November 29, 2016, from
http://www.nami.org/Learn-More/Mental-Health-By-the-Numbers

22. 22
Health Belief Model. (n.d.). Retrieved November 29, 2016,
from https://www.utwente.nl/cw/theorieenoverzicht/theory clusters/health
communication/health_belief_model/