TITLE:
Chronic Stress and Its Association with Psychological, Behavioral and Physiological Variables of Mexican College Students
AUTHORS:
Elizabeth Pozos-Radillo, Lourdes Preciado-Serrano, Ana Plascencia-Campos, Katya Rayas-Servín
KEYWORDS:
Stress, Students, Psychophysiological Disorders, Behavioral Symptoms, Universities
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Applied Sociology,
Vol.5 No.12,
December
17,
2015
ABSTRACT: Chronic Stress in
an academic environment is considered to be the physiological, emotional, cognitive
and behavioral reaction to scholastic events. The objective of this study was
to identify chronic stress and its association with psychological, behavioral
and physiological variables of Mexican students at a public university. A representative
random sample of 527 students in 2012 was assessed. The Stress Symptoms Inventory and the Rossi classification were used
and a multiple regression analysis was carried out. Results showed that 35.3%
of students displayed high levels of chronic stress; 44.8% medium levels and
19.9% low levels, and the variables of working, digestion problems,
nail-biting, feeling depressed, isolation from others, are predictors of
chronic stress. Early detection of the variables associated with chronic stress
in students would facilitate the implementation of educational programs aimed
at developing students’ ability to cope with stressful situations.