How Much Stress Is Too Much for College Students?
Throughout the years, I have discovered that I am a project-overload type of person. That being said, I have a hard time saying "no" to things, which leads to stress due to trying to balance it all, thus sparking my interest for this research essay. I will be reporting on how much stress is too much for college students. I will dive into different socio-economic backgrounds, showing that those who are not as financially stable as others carry more stress. I touch on stress among the male and female gender and found the results to be interesting – there is not a definitive gender that carries more stress than the other. Lastly, I dive into different worth ethics, which revealed that those who tend to pack on many responsibilities deal with stress better short term, but not long term.
Financial hardships are difficult for anyone, especially college students. A vast majority of college students are between the ages of 18-24 (Weijia, 2020), which is an age group where many are still dependents of their parents, whether it be for tuition, rent, bills/groceries, or health insurance – those who are not dependent and have to rely on themselves while being fulltime students face an automatic stressor.
In reference to the male and female genders, I found that it is a toss-up between which gender carries more stress. This is interesting to me, because I was under the impression that women are more stressed; based off of personal experience, I have felt a higher expectation to succeed because I am a woman. Women in coed-college have only had this right since 1831 when Alice Robinson and Catherine Hall received a degree from Mississippi College (Nash, p. 152), and because of them, we are susceptible to working harder because the result simply means more to us.
Diving into the work ethic spectrum, those who are constantly and consistently busy tend to be less stressed in the moment. Coccia Darling goes on to explain that when students are overloaded with a packed schedule, they are less likely to stress themselves out by focusing on what it is that they have to do; they’re too busy doing it! (Darling, 2020) This is interesting, and I can absolutely relate – I am a full-time college student and I juggle two jobs, there is hardly time to reflect on my stress levels.
While students are less stressed in the moment, studies show that students with a heavy workload suffer from mental health issues, such as stress and anxiety, later on down the road (Tran, 2020). I can attest to this; as previously mentioned, I hardly have time to reflect day-to-day on what is happening because my mind is focused on what I have to do/complete next. Lately, due to COVID, I have had a lot of time with just my thoughts, and it has unraveled all of this built-up stress that has been building all semester. I know many students who are “go getters” can relate, and it is nice to know that I am not alone in this.
Overall, this research study has been interesting, and I have enjoyed diving into discovering how much stress is too much for college students. The results surprised me when it came to the correlation between gender and stress, however, I fully anticipated the stress levels in relation to socioeconomics. I was able to connect the most with the research that shared how students who are constantly busy handle stress, and I wholeheartedly agree that stress sneaks up on us after a period of time instead of in the moment.
Works Cited
Coccia, Catherine, and Carol Darling. Having the Time of Their Life: College Student Stress, Dating and Satisfaction with Life. https://eds-b-ebscohost-com.libdata.lib.ua.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=3&sid=26b7e379-f2b3-4c51-9a3b-99319cc71678%40pdc-v-sessmgr02. Accessed Feb, 2020.
Nash, Margaret A. “The Historiography of Education for Girls and Women in the United States.” Rethinking American Education, 2008, pp.143-159., https://www.ncgs.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/The-Education-of-Girls-and-Women-in-the-United-States-A-Historical-Perspective.pdf. Accessed Jan 2020.
Tran, Alisia, and Jeffrey Mintert. “At What Costs? Student Loan Debt, Debt Stress, and Racially/Ethnically Diverse College Students’ Perceived Health.” American Psychological Association, https://eds-b-ebscohost-com.libdata.lib.ua.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4&sid=23118def-f6d5-4e05-9358-171aa6044723%40pdc-v-sessmgr06. Accessed Jan, 2020.
Shi, Weijia. “Health Information Seeking versus Avoiding: How Do College Students Respond to Stress-related Information?”, https://eds-a-ebscohost-com.libdata.lib.ua.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=6661a9ce-7609-497e-95e0-93cc5d8aa37f%40sessionmgr4006. Accessed Jan, 2020.
Throughout the years, I have discovered that I am a project-overload type of person. That being said, I have a hard time saying "no" to things, which leads to stress due to trying to balance it all, thus sparking my interest for this research essay. I will be reporting on how much stress is too much for college students. I will dive into different socio-economic backgrounds, showing that those who are not as financially stable as others carry more stress. I touch on stress among the male and female gender and found the results to be interesting – there is not a definitive gender that carries more stress than the other. Lastly, I dive into different worth ethics, which revealed that those who tend to pack on many responsibilities deal with stress better short term, but not long term.
Financial hardships are difficult for anyone, especially college students. A vast majority of college students are between the ages of 18-24 (Weijia, 2020), which is an age group where many are still dependents of their parents, whether it be for tuition, rent, bills/groceries, or health insurance – those who are not dependent and have to rely on themselves while being fulltime students face an automatic stressor.
In reference to the male and female genders, I found that it is a toss-up between which gender carries more stress. This is interesting to me, because I was under the impression that women are more stressed; based off of personal experience, I have felt a higher expectation to succeed because I am a woman. Women in coed-college have only had this right since 1831 when Alice Robinson and Catherine Hall received a degree from Mississippi College (Nash, p. 152), and because of them, we are susceptible to working harder because the result simply means more to us.
Diving into the work ethic spectrum, those who are constantly and consistently busy tend to be less stressed in the moment. Coccia Darling goes on to explain that when students are overloaded with a packed schedule, they are less likely to stress themselves out by focusing on what it is that they have to do; they’re too busy doing it! (Darling, 2020) This is interesting, and I can absolutely relate – I am a full-time college student and I juggle two jobs, there is hardly time to reflect on my stress levels.
While students are less stressed in the moment, studies show that students with a heavy workload suffer from mental health issues, such as stress and anxiety, later on down the road (Tran, 2020). I can attest to this; as previously mentioned, I hardly have time to reflect day-to-day on what is happening because my mind is focused on what I have to do/complete next. Lately, due to COVID, I have had a lot of time with just my thoughts, and it has unraveled all of this built-up stress that has been building all semester. I know many students who are “go getters” can relate, and it is nice to know that I am not alone in this.
Overall, this research study has been interesting, and I have enjoyed diving into discovering how much stress is too much for college students. The results surprised me when it came to the correlation between gender and stress, however, I fully anticipated the stress levels in relation to socioeconomics. I was able to connect the most with the research that shared how students who are constantly busy handle stress, and I wholeheartedly agree that stress sneaks up on us after a period of time instead of in the moment.
Works Cited
Coccia, Catherine, and Carol Darling. Having the Time of Their Life: College Student Stress, Dating and Satisfaction with Life. https://eds-b-ebscohost-com.libdata.lib.ua.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=3&sid=26b7e379-f2b3-4c51-9a3b-99319cc71678%40pdc-v-sessmgr02. Accessed Feb, 2020.
Nash, Margaret A. “The Historiography of Education for Girls and Women in the United States.” Rethinking American Education, 2008, pp.143-159., https://www.ncgs.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/The-Education-of-Girls-and-Women-in-the-United-States-A-Historical-Perspective.pdf. Accessed Jan 2020.
Tran, Alisia, and Jeffrey Mintert. “At What Costs? Student Loan Debt, Debt Stress, and Racially/Ethnically Diverse College Students’ Perceived Health.” American Psychological Association, https://eds-b-ebscohost-com.libdata.lib.ua.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4&sid=23118def-f6d5-4e05-9358-171aa6044723%40pdc-v-sessmgr06. Accessed Jan, 2020.
Shi, Weijia. “Health Information Seeking versus Avoiding: How Do College Students Respond to Stress-related Information?”, https://eds-a-ebscohost-com.libdata.lib.ua.edu/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=1&sid=6661a9ce-7609-497e-95e0-93cc5d8aa37f%40sessionmgr4006. Accessed Jan, 2020.