Stress Levels and Social Demographic

Stress is acknowledged by academics to be a universal and frequent phenomenon in life. While some people only sometimes experience stress, others struggle with it on a regular basis. In this regard, stress is a significant issue for American college students today. Stress is described as “anything that creates bodily or emotional tension” in the Merriam Webster online dictionary. (2017) Merriam-Webster College students may experience stress during their academic endeavors from a variety of issues relating to both their academic and social lives. In addition, several academics have acknowledged that college students frequently experience high amounts of stress (Largo-Wight, Peterson & Chen, 2005). If not successfully managed, stress can negatively affect their health and well-being thus reducing academic performance and affecting social relations.

In recent times, stress among college students has been receiving a lot of attention with articles appearing in multiple media outlets. The college experience has many stressors from homesickness to feeling constant pressure to score high grades, managing career aspirations, creating a social or romantic life, the high costs associated with college education, and sometimes having to work. Moreover, considering the recent recession, the probability of getting a job even after graduation has reduced which might lead some students to develop an apathy towards education. Prior research has associated student stress levels with the particular field of education with students in the sciences and maths majors having higher scores. The constant pressure to maintain high grades usually leads students to adopt unhealthy eating and studying habits (Largo-Wight, Peterson, & Chen, 2005). Several studies have remarked upon the increased alcohol and drug use among college students which affect their academic and social lives. Moreover, with the rising costs of education, most students have to work part-time jobs, often at minimum wage to reduce their student loan debt at graduation. The financial struggles are a major stressor especially for students from low-income backgrounds. Additionally, college usually is the first time that most students are away from home and exploring new relationships. These relationships can become stressors either due to external factors or inherently toxic thus affecting the student’s mental and emotional development.

However, most colleges and universities allocate minimal budgets to their counseling and mental health departments which leaves them with inadequate resources to handle an increasing flow of students. Furthermore, a 2010 survey among first years at UCLA shows that first-year undergraduates often have poor emotional health (Pryor et al., 2011). Another article in Inside Higher Ed evaluates stress levels at Columbia University and the University of San Diego which evaluated multiple dimensions related to ethnicity, the field of study, sexual orientation, and employment status. The study concluded that black students had the highest stress levels due to property damage and disrespectful remarks.

Researchers have identified stressors as contributing towards the negative academic performance of students. Chronically tired individuals cannot maintain attention in class thus affecting their comprehension of the class material. Sustained poor performance leads to expulsion thus reducing the individual’s job prospects. Moreover, the high financial costs associated with college education coupled with a recovering economy that does not guarantee employment may lead some students to drop out and enter into the labor force in minimum-wage jobs. In these respect, increased stress levels are associated with poor academic and economic outcomes. Additionally, students with high-stress levels often do not have strong social relationships leading to perceptions of isolation and helplessness.

Methods

The study took place at San Diego State University which has an approximate enrollment of 29,853 with 54% of these as females while 46% are male (San Diego State University, 2017). Ten students were selected randomly from this population. Participant selection happened through a probability sampling method called systematic sampling. The individuals in the study were chosen from a random population sample, then selected by using a sampling interval of 3. The sampling frame consisted of people dining at the University’s East Commons food court. The participants were approached on a late Tuesday afternoon while they sat in the large seating area of the facility. Participants received general information about the study that had the approval of Professor France T. Nguyen-Grozavu of SDSU’s School of Social Work. The participants had to give voluntary consent showing they understood the study objectives and expectations. Due to the very small sample size in this study, we had weak external validity. Therefore, we do not feel confident these results can be generalized to all college students in the United States. Furthermore, the sample assumes that conditions at San Diego State University are similar across campuses in the United States in addition to demographic representation.

The dependent variable of this study was the individual’s perceived level of stress while the independent variables were the individual stressors. To measure perceived stress levels, we used the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). The test was created in 1983 and provides an objective tool for understanding how different stimuli affect people’s feelings and stress levels. Perceived stress tells us how much a person is stressed at a given point in time or over given period. The PSS has ten questions covering the participant’s feelings and thought processes in the last month. Participants rated their responses on a 5-point scale ranging from never to very often. We used demographic characteristics of the respondent as the independent variable in the study.

Results

The survey assessed the stress levels of 10 students. Six of them were female, three males, and one transgender. Moreover, it featured a mix of white, Hispanic, Asian, and black participants thus giving some diversity. Most of them featured occasional smoking and alcohol use although they tended to depend on the individual’s schedule and stressors. The table below presents the demographic characteristics of the participants and their associated stress levels from the Perceived Stress Scale.

From the results, it is clear that individuals who identified as part of a sexual minority had higher stress levels than their heterosexual colleagues. Moreover, the stress scores were higher among women as compared to men may be due to the social stigma associated with the LGBT group. The situation was also similar for the transgender participant who scored a 2.5 on the PSS scale showing moderate stress levels. However, the participant also reported heavy use of alcohol and cigarettes.

The demographic with the lowest stress levels were white males aged 18-25 who did not have long work hours and moderate to low stress levels. The results also show a strong relationship between employment and stress levels as most of the students reporting working more than 20 hours every week had moderate to high-stress levels. However, no particular race was identified to have higher than average PSS scores. However, this may be due to the small sample size that might skew the results and give non-generalizable results.

Discussion/Implications

The participants with the highest stress scores were two females who identified as lesbians/bisexual. One had PSS score of 3.1 while the other had 2.9 both considered on the higher end of the scale. Moreover, they also featured long working hours in addition to their class schedule which may have acted as additional stressors. Multiple scholars and population surveys have confirmed that people under stress, especially chronic stress tend to adopt unhealthier behaviors compared to non-stressed individuals (Mahmoud, Staten, Hall, & Lennie, 2012). These conclusions are confirmed in the study results where the highly and moderately stressed people had higher levels of cigarette and alcohol use as a response to stress.

Psychological studies have also established conclusive links between stressors and a lack of social support networks. Social support has an important role in maintaining optimal physical and mental health. Data shows that positive social support enhances an individual’s resilience to stress. In this context, psychological resilience refers to a process of adapting to adversity which features the heavy involvement of the sympathetic nervous system and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical systems. While it seems counterintuitive, having positive social support can improve a person’s ability to deal with problems by increasing their self-esteem and perceived a sense of independence. However, it is crucial to acknowledge that some people may find it hard to develop social skills and making connections. Additionally, the prevalent use of technology and rise of social media platforms has reduced the amount of face to face interactions necessary to build strong social relationships. The situation worsens if one identifies as transgender or gay which might show a social intolerance for these groups. While recent regulations have established their rights in the constitution, there is still a negative cultural sentiment towards these groups which may explain their relatively high PSS scores.

While there is minimal evidence showing a relationship between stress and alcohol and stress-dependence, the trend shows that alcohol abuse tends to correspond to elevated stress levels with alcohol used as self-medication (Leeies, Pagura, Sareen, & Bolton, 2010). Ironically, while cigarette and alcohol users justify use to relieve stress, they often have higher stress levels than their non-smoking counterparts. With these concerning statistics and the subsequent effect on academic performance, it becomes imperative for colleges and universities to establish programs to handle these stressors. Currently, most colleges have insufficient facilities to handle the mental health needs of the increasing number of students. Some colleges have improved the convenience of the process by having students take short consultations with psychologists who then assess the individual medical health needs and refers them to appropriate professionals. For example, the University of Texas established a Brief Assessment and Referral Team which features short consultations followed by appropriate professional care (APA, 2017). For some, single sessions with a counselor aid in resolving a problem or talk about their concerns. In this respect, the counselor works to provide social support for the stressed students.

Other institutions have established online channels to help students in resolving their anxieties by reducing the time taken to access mental health services. The University of Florida created an online program which mainly targets students with anxiety disorders. The program offers helpful resources on how to monitor anxiety, facing fears, and problem-solving skills (Regehr, Glancy, & Pitts, 2013). Furthermore, counselors can provide weekly video conferences via an app thus increasing the convenience and decreasing the need for in-person consultations. Moreover, there is a need to integrate wellness awareness in the faculty interactions with students. Some students have implemented online resources for topics of interest such as healthy relationships, sleep, and time-management. Additional orientation programs are also important for first-year students who may become disoriented by the college experience.

Conclusion

Similar to prior studies, the current study found that students have multiple stressors such as employment status, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, and field of study. Those in engineering and sciences tend to have higher stress levels due to the intense pressure to maintain high academic performance. Moreover, having a job was also associated with higher stress levels especially for students who needed the income to pay for tuition or boarding expenses. Furthermore, African Americans stressors were associated with inappropriate racial remarks. In all instances, cigarette and alcohol users justified their actions are relieving stress although research has shown the long-term negative effects. With the rising number of students pursuing higher education, it is necessary for institutions to consider the mental health of their students. They can implement training programs for first-year students in addition to providing resources on how to deal with social stressors. Additionally, students can increase their resilience through developing strong social support networks in the form of family, students, and counselors.

References

APA. (2017). Students under pressure. http://www.apa.org. Retrieved 10 December 2017, from http://www.apa.org/monitor/2014/09/cover-pressure.aspx

Definition of STRESS. (2017). Merriam-webster.com. Retrieved 30 November 2017, from https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stress

Largo-Wight, E., Peterson, P. M., & Chen, W. W. (2005). Perceived problem solving, stress, and health among college students. American journal of health behavior, 29(4), 360-370.

Leeies, M., Pagura, J., Sareen, J., & Bolton, J. M. (2010). The use of alcohol and drugs to self‐medicate symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder. Depression and anxiety, 27(8), 731-736.

Mahmoud, J. S. R., Staten, R. T., Hall, L. A., & Lennie, T. A. (2012). The relationship among young adult college students’ depression, anxiety, stress, demographics, life satisfaction, and coping styles. Issues in mental health nursing, 33(3), 149-156.

Pryor, J. H., Hurtado, S., DeAngelo, L. E., Blake, L. P., & Tran, S. (2010). The American freshman: National norms fall 2009. Univ of California Press.

Regehr, C., Glancy, D., & Pitts, A. (2013). Interventions to reduce stress in university students: A review and meta-analysis. Journal of affective disorders, 148(1), 1-11.

San Diego State University. (2017). U.S News & World Report. Retrieved 3 December 2017, from https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/sdsu-1151