PERCEIVED STRESS, COPING STRATEGIES, AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING AMONG UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Abstract

Psychological well-being of students is affected by stressors of university life. Academic load, terrifying examination system, and worries about the future can cause a lot of stress among students. Besides that, the inaccessibility of mental health services in universities also help responsible for reduction in maintain the wellbeing. The students interpret stress and which coping mechanisms support their transition through the early years of adulthood define their psychological well being. The present research aimed at exploring the relationship among perceived stress, coping strategies, and psychological well, being of university students. This study used a correlational research design. Through convenience sampling, the total data was collected from 327 undergraduate students in the age group of 18–25 years. To evaluate stress, coping, and mental health, self-report questionnaires were used to collect the data. The analysis conducted using Pearson correlation indicates the association of perceived stress and psychological well-being.  The students’ coping strategies positively associated with the psychological well-being of the students. In addition, coping strategies were negatively correlated to perceived stress. Multiple regression analysis revealed that perceived stress and coping strategies could significantly predict psychological well-being. Coping strategies were less effective than perceived stress. Findings revealed that poor psychological well-being is associated with higher perceived stress whereas association with more positive psychological well-being was greater use of adaptive flexible coping. We can, therefore, conclude that looking at college students’ stress perceptions and coping is important. Stress intervention programs help enhance coping which might bring about psychological well-being and later affect mental health university settings.