CVCITC Research Journal

Vol. 1, No. 1, 2014

ISSN: 2362-9029

SOURCES OF STRESS AMONG COLLEGE STUDENTS*

Juvilyn G. Bulo1
Dr. Marita G. Sanchez2
1

Student Researcher
Faculty Researcher
Cagayan Valley Computer and Information Technology College, Inc.
2

Email address: 1 [email protected]

[email protected]

To cite this article:

Bulo, J.G. & M.G. Sanchez (2014). Sources of stress among college students. CVCITC Research Journal, 1 (1), pp 16 25.

Abstract
College students are exposed to many problems from family, financial,
peers, and school environment. As he proceeded, continued and finally
ended his courses enrolled in college, various stressors hamper the successful attainment of his primary and secondary goals. There are common
stressors that affect college students: intrapersonal, interpersonal, academic
and environmental stressors. The focus of this study is on the pressures
affecting the college student in dealing with his family, friends and significant persons. His major concept of stress and stressors in the college environment and which of the sources of stress caused him to be more prone
most. A questionnaire on Student-Life Stress Inventory was adopted to
gather the needed data among 150 college students. Frequency count, percent, rank, mean and Pearson-r correlation were used. Results show that the
interpersonal stressors of students ranked the highest while the environmental stressors the lowest. Specific results under the interpersonal stressors
include working to people they do not know, trouble with parents, and relationship with opposite sex. These results support the idea in creating a stress
management program for higher education institution to consider implementation.
Key words: Stress, Stressor, Academic Environment.

* A conference paper presented at the 3rd i-COME 2012 held in Penang, Malaysia on
November 1-3, 2012.

CVCITC Research Journal; 1(1): 2014

17

1. Introduction
Stress is inevitable and unfortunately it produces headache, neck crick
and causes many health problems that include depression, anxiety, heart
disease and stroke (Clark, 2013). According to DZurilla & Sheddy (1991),
college students are prone to stress because of their transitional nature of
adjustment to the rudiments of higher education program. This means that a
sudden change of a secondary school environment that lacks the use of
modern technology to the highly cognition level of learning resulted to
stressful situations. As a result, they hardly comprehend with new lessons in
classroom and experience cultural differences (Aquino, 1998). In their stay
in the college environment, they need to cope with the standards of higher
education the fast-paced teaching-learning conditions and procedures.
According to Prather (2013), keeping things into perspective, having fun
with hobbies, and enjoy indulgences in moderation are secrets to stress
busters. Anything that poses a challenge or threat to well being undermine
both mental and physical health (MayoClinic Staff, 2012).
There are common stressors in college life that include greater academic
demands, being on ones own in new environment, financial responsibilities,
awareness of ones sexual identity and orientation, exposure to new people
and making decisions on a higher level (National Health Ministries, 2006).
Earning high grades is a source of stress that affects them to succeed in
making good impressions to their parents, classmates and significant other
persons. Failures become pressures that come from intrapersonal, interpersonal, academic and environmental stressors (Lucier, 2012). Internal and
external stressors are agents that cause stress (Chadha, 2006). College students look at these stressors to affect them when they fail from their academic activities knowing this as the major reason of their parents approval
(Edlin & Golanty, 2007). They look into these pressures as the primary
concern for acceptance and honor (Reifman, 2011). Aptly, college students
use this as the main reason to request for additional financial allowance from
parents or guardians. The manner that makes them fail in their academic
work determines their approval (Ellis & Harper, 2006). These approvals
include boy-girl relationship, parents love and financial support, teacher
relationship, peer pressures, among others.
Students and teachers are the most affected in higher education environment. College students, as recipients of stress, are the subject of this
study. Reactions to stressors depend upon his ability to cope with various
instances of stressors. These sources of stress were studied and analyzed in
order to categorize its value in a scale of 4. Proper management of these
stressors could be polished for the benefit of servicing students in any
campus of the same nature. The purpose of this study is to examine which of
the sources of stress caused many college students in Santiago City to be
prone most and be helpful in creating stress management program for higher

18 Bulo, J.G. and M.G. Sanchez (2014). Sources of Stress among College Students

education institutions.
1.1 Literature Review
Most people encounter stress that lead them to rapid bodily changes such
as feelings of emotional unrest causing the body strains with body aches.
With repeated stressful situations, causes tension and pressures on the body
that contribute to physical and psychological problems (Dixon & Robinson,
2005). Defining stress from a medical dictionary dwells on any situation
that evokes negative thoughts and feelings among persons or groups. It
means that people who encounter stress will have different experiences in
their feelings and thoughts (DZurilla & Sheedy, 1991). This is imperative
to the amount of stress involvement they encounter when stressed. This can
be influenced by individuals ability to effectively cope with stressful events
and situations (Segal, 2013). Disclosed to this is when college students meet
such nervous tension and is not dealt with effectively, they feel lonely and
nervous with excessive worrying due failure to cope with their negative
feelings.
College students had almost the same patterns of encounters about stress
related problems (Gittins, 2007). This involves many factors such as interpersonal, intrapersonal, academic and environmental. The 2001 National College Health Assessment of the American College Health Association Report (2001) revealed that during the year 2000, 76% of students felt
"overwhelmed" and 22% were unable to function as a result of depression.
This means that stress among college students caused body strains with
body aches where they are unable to normally function in times of stress.
Presnall (2008) conducted the Student Stress Survey that showed the
college students having high stress on school related issues. Some of these
pressures affected their emotional and mental health. Furthermore, the
survey polled 2,253 undergraduate students aged 18 to 24 randomly selected
from schools nationwide and revealed that the primary sources of stress
were financial problems, relationship, family problems, and extracurricular
activities. In the outcomes of students who experienced stress, they considered alcohol drinking, wanting to use drugs and going out with friends as
their immediate solutions. Professional help from teachers and counselors
were also seen as a positive solution.
MacGeorge, Samter & Gillihan (2005) and Sasaki & Yamasaki (2007)
said that depression is a major problem. Intrapersonal and interpersonal
factors were also traced by the psychologists that exacerbate college stress
and depression. This indicated that stress was a normal part of their everyday life. In this study, college students face many unique forms of stress

CVCITC Research Journal; 1(1): 2014

19

and the most common was to get good grades, having to juggle schoolwork
with other responsibilities, making a decision about future career choice,
and developing a variety of new interpersonal relationships.
Furr, Westefeld, McConnell & Jenkins (2001) reported that 53% of 1,455
college students labeled themselves as being depressed since starting college
and are attributed to academic issues, loneliness, financial difficulties and
social relationship problems. Additionally, 9% of them reported having
suicidal ideation. Morris, Brooks & May (2003) stated that the perceived
stress and stressors unnecessarily consistent across all college students and
have been found to differ between traditional and nontraditional students. In
the same manner, the present study included the same attributes on academic
issues, loneliness, financial and social relationship problems.
Archer (2003) said that stress reactions to various situations affect the
overall level of a persons health. One that they felt is always overwhelmed
while they eat poorly, sleepless and overwhelmed with stressful events. All
the presented literature and studies that deal with stress related to the present
study in terms of the feelings and emotions of college students about
stressors and the result of these factors affecting them especially in family
and peer relationships, while meeting the demands of school related works.
Preventive measures to the suspended effects of the presented issues and
concerns about students health and coping mechanisms to stress made the
presentation of the literatures and studies different in the present study.
1.2 Analytical Framework
Stress can be caused by many factors from the interpersonal, intrapersonal,
academic and environmental concerns. This study aimed to examine which
of the sources of stress that caused many college students to be prone stress.
Hence, the creation of stress management program of Cagayan Valley
Computer and Information Technology College
The framework in Figure 1 presents the relationship of the stressors and
the extent of stress the college students were affected in the interpersonal,
intrapersonal, academic and environmental conditions. Those that were
found crucial for immediate solutions were identified and were part of the
bases for a proposed Stress Management Program for students in schools.
Hence, students, school administrators, teachers and parents would primarily benefit from the result of this study.

20 Bulo, J.G. and M.G. Sanchez (2014). Sources of Stress among College Students

Figure 1. The Research Paradigm

2. Methodology
The descriptive-purposive research was used in this study. The primary
gathering tool used in this study was the Student-Life Stress Inventory
Questionnaire of B.M. Gadzella (1991). Other sources of data were based on
the referrals of the Guidance Counselor in the college. Observed feelings
they commonly encountered were placed into a structured questionnaire and
validated by experts. The teacher with training on e-counseling utilized the
e-mentoring processes and conducted informal interviews with other
teachers in the school environment using the unstructured interviews. A total
of 150 college students responded to the referrals of counseling and advising
for which the purpose of the study was taken as the boundary. Simple
frequency and percentage count, mean and rank were used in the treatment
of the data. For qualitative equivalents of the data gathered, a 5-point scale
was utilized. Pearson-r correlation was also used to test the hypothesis set
forth.

3. Results and Discussion

On personal profile of respondents, the following were found: Majority
belongs to ages 16-18 with 44% response and the least was 21 to 22 age
bracket with 11.30%; females outnumbered the males by 29.4% with fourth
year level the greatest number responding to the questionnaire with 42%.

CVCITC Research Journal; 1(1): 2014

21

Table 1. Extent of the Level of Stress that College Student Encountered from
the Stressors
Stressors

Mean

1. Interpersonal
2. Intrapersonal
3. Academic
4. Environmental
Overall Mean
Interpersonal Stressors
1. Change in social activities
2. Roommate conflict
3. Work with people you dont know
4. Fight with bf/ gf
4. Relation with opposite sex
4. Trouble with parents
Overall Mean

3.01
2.22
2.64
1.66
2.38

Qualitative
Equivalent
Much
Moderate
Moderate
Slight
Moderate

1.95
1.70
3.95
3.20
3.52
3.75
3.01

Slight
Slight
Much
Much
Much
Much
Much

Rank
1
3
2
4

5
6
1
4
3
2

The extent of the level of stressors that college students encountered

showed an overall mean of 2.38 with a qualitative equivalent of much.
Their interpersonal stressors ranked highest while the environmental
stressors, lowest with slight qualitative equivalent. Going further with the
specific result under the interpersonal stressors, it appeared that the highest
were working with people they dont know, trouble with parents and relation
with opposite sex.
Based on the items enumerated in the questionnaire for each stressor, only
the first three highest mean ratings were presented in Table 2 as the most
possible stressors of college students. The highest mean were observed in
financial difficulties, lower grade as expected, increase in class work load,
work with people you do not know and trouble with parents.
During the interview sessions of students taken at random from the actual
enrollees of CVCITC for school year 2011-12, the following stressful conditions were confirmed: the college is exposed to many problems in the
family environment that relates to finances and the expectations of students
to receive parents approval relates to grades and student accomplishments in
school. The reasons of fears in public speaking were due to their low self
esteem and facing the opposite sex.

22 Bulo, J.G. and M.G. Sanchez (2014). Sources of Stress among College Students

Table 2. The Stressors that College Students are Most Prone to Encounter
Interpersonal Stressor

Mean

1. Work with people you do not know

2. Fight with bf/ gf
3. Relation with opposite sex
4. Trouble with parents
Intrapersonal Stressor
1. New responsibilities
2. Financial difficulties
3. Spoke in public
4. Change in eating habits
Academic Stressor
1. Increased in class work load
2. Lower grade than expected
3. Missed too many classes
4. Anticipation of Graduation
Environmental Stressor
Computer/Technical Problems

3.95
3.20
3.52
3.75

Qualitative
Equivalent
Much
Much
Much
Much

3.53
4.83
4.52
2.37

Much
Very Much
Very Much
Moderate

7
1
5
11

4.46
4.79
2.15
3.60

Very Much
Very Much
Moderate
Much

3
2
12
6

2.61

Moderate

10

Rank
4
9
8
5

There are also occasions that parents disapprove their childrens going
into relationship. Some students affirmed that they missed to attend their
classes in anticipation of their graduation. With increased in more class
work load such as reports and term papers, they suffered from the changes in
their eating habits and new responsibilities. There is no much worry about
environmental stressor because it can easily be resolved by the school administration.
Table 3. Significant Relationship of Interpersonal Stressors, Academic
and Environmental factors
Variables
1. Interpersonal VS Intrapersonal
2. Interpersonal VS Academic
3. Interpersonal VS Environment

Computed-r
0.01
0.02
0.05

Critical-r
0.9865
0.9865
0.9865

Result
Insignificant
Insignificant
Insignificant

Table 3 presents the relationship of interpersonal stressors to intrapersonal,

academic and environmental stressors. It denotes that when interpersonal
stressor is not significantly related to intrapersonal, academic and environmental stressors. Results are lesser than the critical-r value of .9865.
Therefore, the null hypothesis is accepted. This means that interpersonal

CVCITC Research Journal; 1(1): 2014

23

stressor is not significantly related and does not affect intrapersonal, academic and environmental factors that caused college students to become
stressed. Their dealing with the other person is not related to the stressors
from academics and environment.
Proposed Stress Management Program for CVCITC
The following Stress Management Variables should be considered as the
focus of Stress Management Program for CVCITC with the following
clusters/categories:
1. Interpersonal should include Counseling on the following issues:
work with people dont know, Trouble with Parents, Relations with
Opposite Sex;
2. Academic related activities should include more information campaign
and advising for students who are potential to excel in academics
(lower grade than expected, increase in class load, anticipation of
graduation);
3. Intrapersonal related program should include financial difficulties,
spoke in public, new responsibilities;
4. Environmental concerns should focus on computer/technical adjustments of the students in their IT professional courses

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Department of Psychology and Special Education,East Texas University.

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Authors Biography
JUVILYN G. BULO
Ms. Juvilyn G. Bulo is one of prides of CVCITC. She had been an Insurance Agents Secretary at Philamlife Head Office, MOA Complex Manila Bay, and Pasay City prior to her present position as Financial Advisor.
She finished her Certificate in Information Technology as a Local Government Unit-City Scholar on April 2007. Later she took Bachelor of Science in Business Administration major in Management as Congressional
Scholar of the 4th District of Isabela and graduated in 2011. Being a
working student during her college life, she occupied various positions like
Service Crew, BPO Staff and a team leader of Research and Surveys. She
concurrently works as Senior Independent Beauty Consultant at Mary Kay
Philippines and attended various meetings and conventions as lectur-

CVCITC Research Journal; 1(1): 2014

25

er/demonstrator of beauty products. With her affiliations, she has visited

Hongkong and Macau as a qualifier to the companys first Kick-off Rally
outside the Philippines. As a scholar, her peer-reviewed research was presented during the 2nd CVCITC Research Forum in 2012 and was chosen by
the Universiti Utara Malaysia, Sintok Kedah, Malaysia. She presented her
crafted research in an international conference on communication and media
held in Malaysia on November 2012.
MARITA G. SANCHEZ
Dr. Marita G. Sanchez has been in higher education for more than 3
decades now. Exposed in counseling, instruction and research, she has
crafted researches that made her a local and international research presenter.
She has been to Taiwan and Malaysia, and local avenues in the Philippines
for research purposes. Her passion for research made her qualify to the
International Technical Research Committee of 3rd i-COME convergence in
research; and became peer reviewer for local and international conferences
facilitated by the College of Multimedia and Communications,
UniversitiUtara Malaysia. She was appointed as a member of the Technical
Research Reviewer for the incoming international conference for communication and media held in Langkawi, Malaysia. At present, she is the
Vice-President for Academic Affairs at CVCITC and the concurrent Program Chair of the Business Administration Department and the overseer of
the Research, Planning and Publication Office.

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