Emotional Freedom Technique for Stress Reduction in Nursing Students: A Pilot Project
The Journal of Nursing Education
|March 12, 2025
Summary
The emotional freedom technique (EFT) effectively reduced stress in nursing students. This pilot study suggests EFT is a feasible stress management strategy for academic settings.
Area of Science:
- Nursing Education
- Mental Health
- Complementary Therapies
Background:
- College students, especially nursing students, face significant stress impacting academic performance.
- Existing campus mental health services are limited by cost and time.
- Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) offers a cost-effective, adaptable approach to stress management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the feasibility of using EFT for stress reduction in first-semester nursing students.
- To evaluate EFT's potential as a practical intervention for managing academic stress.
Main Methods:
- A quasiexperimental pilot study was conducted over 13 weeks.
- Participants engaged in regular EFT sessions.
- Distress and perceived stress were measured using the Subjective Units of Distress Scale and Perceived Stress Scale-10.
Main Results:
- The Emotional Freedom Technique proved to be a feasible intervention.
- EFT demonstrated effectiveness in reducing stress levels among participants.
Conclusions:
- EFT presents a novel strategy for mitigating stress and distress in nursing students within academic environments.
- This technique offers a promising, accessible tool for student well-being.
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