Chronic Stress and Its Association with Psychological, Behavioral and Physiological Variables of Mexican College Students

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.