This research discovered the relationship between Suzanne Kobasa’s concept of personality hardiness and cumulative grade point average in diploma nursing students. Hardiness, a stress mediating trait, consists of the personality characteristics commitment, control and challenge. A convenience sample of 36 first year students in a diploma nursing program participated in the study. Each student's level of personality hardiness was determined, along with subscores of commitment, control and challenge, using a 50 item questionnaire. The cumulative grade point average was obtained from each student's academic record at the completion of the first year of study.
The Pearson's r Product Moment Correlation was used to correlate hardiness score and cumulative grade point average. The correlation between hardiness and cumulative grade
point average in this sample was not significant. The results did not support the theory derived from the literature that high levels of hardiness would be positively correlated to high
grade point average.
Further exploration of the concept of hardiness and its relationship to stress mediation and academic performance in nursing students is needed. Implications for further research in this area are offered.