The Impact of Performance on Students’ Reflective and Coping Strategies in Higher Education

Abstract

This research aimed to track the impact of performance as a pedagogical technique on students’ reflective and coping strategies. The study was conducted at the National University of Ostroh Academy (Ukraine) in the first autumn semester of 2024 (from September to December) on a sample of 120 students from such study programs as Psychology and Public Health. The type of design was a pretest-posttest experimental design (PPED), where we measured indicators both before (pretest) and after (posttest) the performance intervention. The methodological framework consisted of three approaches: the Reflective Problem-Solving Strategies (RPSS) (Savchenko and Makienko), the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations (CISS) (Endler and Parker), and the BASIC Ph model (Lahad and Leykin). The study presented descriptive statistics, a chi-square test (x2), and Pearson’s correlation analysis to show connections between reflective and coping strategies. The study stated that performance positively changes reflective strategies, transforming and adapting them to external conditions. In particular, the results showed that students most frequently employed reflective strategies such as “Criticality in Analyzing and Evaluating Information” and “Making Decisions Based on Internal Standards” to achieve a more effective and systematic analysis of problems that arise during problem-solving. The Pearson correlation analysis revealed that reflective strategies correlate most strongly with active and adaptive coping strategies, such as the Social Distraction Scale (CSSS) and Social Support (BASIC Ph), indicating the importance of social (group) interaction in the development of cognitive skills. Altogether, the avoidance coping strategies have been decreased significantly, indicating an increase in problem-solving, decision-making, and responsibility. The conclusion is that performance increases reflective strategies by directly solving problems, using external resources as emotional support and social coordination within the group. Performance can create open conditions for reflective problem-solving and deep emotional support between participants, which will further increase student achievement and learning motivation