A CORRELATIONAL STUDY ON THE IMPACT OF

PERCEIVED SOURCES OF STRESS ON ACADEMIC

PERFORMANCE

PSYCHOLOGY AND EDUCATION: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL

2022
Volume: 6
Pages: 313-320
Document ID: 2022PEMJ434
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7452156
Manuscript Accepted: 2022-13-12
Psych Educ,2022, 6: 313-320, Document ID: PEMJ434, doi:10.5281/zenodo.7452156, ISSN 2822-4353
Research Article

A Correlational Study on the Impact of Perceived

Sources of Stress on AcademicPerformance
John Patrick L. Arcite*
For affiliations and correspondence, see the last page.

Abstract
The main objective of this study was to determine the impact of perceived sources of stress on the academic
performance of college students in the new normal classes. It utilized the descriptive correlational method of
research and applied the following statistical treatment of data’s: Mean, Pearson–r, T-test, and ANOVA using
SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences). This investigation used researcher-made survey questionnaire
which undergoes validation and summative assessment tool for both general and professional education which
undergoes item analysis. Universal sampling technique was used with a total of 119 college students in Davao de
Oro, Philippines. The result of the study revealed that students in new- normal education have high stress on
academic factors, personal factors, relationship factors, and environmental factors. Moreover, there is a moderate
negative correlation on perceived sources of stress and academic performance which means that the higher the
stress level, the lower the academic performance will be. Age, Gender, and Ethnicity are examined to find
significant difference among the group, the result shows that there is no significant difference on both perceived
sources of stress and academic performance in relation to the stated moderating variables. As recommendations,
students must be more motivated and engaged in learning for them to easily find comfort and healthy relationship.
Teachers must be updated and well-trained with the new trends of teaching strategies to students see their fullest
potential and be honed holistically. Schools shall have program for students to be provided with counselling
sessions with a licensed professional counselor or psychometrician. This is to advocate on the Mental Health
Awareness and to intervene students who are struggling to build themselves as early as possible.

Keywords: perceived sources of stress, academic performance, academic factor, personal factor,
relationship factor, environmental factor, age, gender, ethnicity

Introduction notion that extremely high stress levels might impair

As someone tries to cope with or adjust to pressures,
stress develops as a negative emotional, cognitive,
behavioral, and physiological process (Bernstein, et
al., 2008). In the same way, researchers have defined
stress as the awareness of the paradox between
external stressors (burden) and a person's capacity to
meet these demands (Topper, 2007). Similar to this,
students are prone to stress due to their expectations to
succeed as well as those of their parents and
professors, which adds extra load to them.
the effectiveness of studies and result in subpar
motivation and performance in the classroom. It comes
to the conclusion that students who had stressful life
events also had the lowest health outcomes and lower
quality of life. According to a 2013 study by Amorte et
al. at Misamis University in Ozamiz City, Philippines,
the majority of respondents agreed that the factors
contributing to stress among second-year marine
engineering students are projects, requirements,
problems with instructors, paying tuition fees, issuing
permits on exam days, and
understanding/comprehension of the subjects enrolled.

Additionally, the variety of learning and development
opportunities available in the tertiary education
environment may result in harmful stress levels,
impacting students' social skills and academic success.
Understanding the causes of stress is important for
making it from getting out of control or intolerable
levels (Callahan, 2015). According to Liao et al.
(2006), extreme stress can be source of physical and
mental health issues as well as lower self-esteem and
have an adverse effect on students' academic
performance (Robbins et al., 2006; Hofer, 2007).
In the United States, a study on stress by Essel et al.
(2016) at the University of New York supports the
Richard Lazarus' study from 1984 on the transactional
theory of stress and coping (TTSC) describes stress as
the result of a transaction between an individual and
their complex environment, which may include
interpersonal and personal issues. According to
Lazarus, an individual's cognitive interpretation of
potentially stressful events and experiences that are
regarded as person-environment interactions that
depend on the influence of the stressor is what
determines how stress is perceived by the individual. It
is typically viewed as a transaction between a person
and the stressors in his environment. This transaction
is made up of two key p ro cesses, n am ely
p sy cho log ical appraisal and coping.

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Research Article
Stress may occur in our daily lives, according to
Bernstein et al. (2008). He also believed that stress is a
harmful emotional, cognitive, behavioral, and
physiological process that develops as a result of a
person's response to stimuli. He feels that stress is a
part of life, regardless of how wealthy, powerful,
attractive, or happy a person may be. However,
depending on the circumstances, stress can take on
several forms. In this study, the researcher aims to
contribute to Psychology and Education specifically in
curriculum and instruction by finding the impact of
perceived sources of stress on college students'
academic performance.
Research Questions
This study's primary purpose is to determine the
impact of self – concept, self – esteem, self – efficacy
on the academic performance of the undergraduate
students. Specifically, this study sought to answer the
following questions:
1. What is the profile of undergraduate students in
terms of;
1.1.Age;
1.2. Gender; and
1.3.Ethnicity.
2. What is the level of stress when measured according
to the following perceived sources of stress;
2.1.Academic Factor
2.2. Personal Factor
2.3.Relationship Factor
2.4. Environmental Factor
3. What is the level of academic performance of
undergraduate students when measured according to
their test scores in;
3.1 General Education
3.2 Professional Education
4. Is there significant relationship between academic
performance of undergraduate students and the
following perceived sources of stress;
4.1.Academic Factor
4.2.Personal Factor
4.3.Relationship Factor
4.4. Environmental Factor
5. Is there significant difference in perceived sources
of stress of undergraduate students when grouped
according to;
5.1. Age;
5.2. Gender; and
5.3. Ethnicity
John Patrick L. Arcite
Literature Review
Understanding Stress
There are two different sorts of stress. Distress was the
first and best-researched type of stress (O'Sullivan,
2010). Eustress is a different type of stress that can
exist. Eustress is seen as the favorable cognitive
assessment of the body's reaction to a current stressor.
It can be felt when the outcome is positive and when
the person's wellbeing is enhanced. Contrarily, distress
was a state of stress that resulted in an unpleasant
emotional reaction and a negative physiological
reaction (Ridner, 2004). (Dyrbye et al., 2005).
Students have reportedly reported having significant
levels of perceived stress and psychological suffering,
according to various research (Saleh et al., 2017).
Two types of stress can be distinguished. Distress was
the first and most extensively researched type of stress
(O'Sullivan, 2010). The term "eustress" refers to a
different type of stress. Eustress is thought to be a
positive cognitive assessment of the body's reaction to
an ongoing stressor. When the result was positive and
the person's wellbeing was enhanced, it might be felt.
Distress, on the other hand, was a condition of tension
that resulted in an unfavorable emotional reaction and
a harmful body reaction (Ridner, 2004). (Dyrbye et al.,
2005). Students have reported high levels of
psychological anguish and perceived stress, according
to many studies (Saleh et al., 2017).
Perceived Sources of Stress Among Students
According to Bernstein et al. (2008), every
circumstance or event that poses a risk of interfering
with people's ability to go about their regular lives
without making changes is a source of stress. Stressors
are those things that cause stress. Undoubtedly,
students are involved in a small number of demanding
activities. Numerous factors can have an impact on
students' academic outcomes. Similarly, Phinney and
Haas (2003) point out sources of stress as a specific
collection of stressful encounters that students face,
including: financial difficulties, household chores,
commitments associated to working while attending
school, and having a high academic load.
Olivo (2014) noted that there are two types of stress:
stress fueled by anxiety and stress fueled by anger, as
well as a much more substantial and rising stressor.
Our stress and the associated issues resulted from
moods that were ignored, denied, undervalued,
constrained, or simply dealt with ineffectively.
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Research Article
Troubled emotions are at the root of the majority of
your most significant troubles, including splurging,
on going relatio n sh ip ch allen g es, money
mismanagement, substance abuse, and even most of
the time-poor physical wellness, if they are not treated
beneficially. Similarly, students' stress is brought on
by several academic challenges that outweigh their
capacity for self-adaptation (Wilks, 2008).
Busari (2012) discovered that stress contributed to
depression in secondary school students and had an
impact on their academic performance. Precautionary
measures education, life skills instruction, and other
healing methods should all be seriously considered. If
it is severe and ignored, it may interfere with the
student's academic progress and on-campus activities,
increasing the likelihood that they will engage in
substance misuse and other risky behaviors (Richlin-
Klonsky & Hoe in Busari, 2012).
Coping with Stress
According to Dimitrov's (2017) research, stress can be
reduced by ensuring that students give their health and
wellness the utmost priority. Some of the elements to
pay attention to are food, exercise, effort, and
recreation. Additionally, he found that the educational
system places more emphasis on academic learning
than on pupils' overall development. Sharma et al.
(2016) also mentioned the use of several techniques to
reduce stress. One physical activity performed each
day can help with the stress issue. One can also use a
variety of time management techniques and engage in
leisure pursuits that are advantageous for students.
Additionally, it was suggested that institutions should
have a relaxing atmosphere to reduce stress. Changes
in teaching methods on the part of the teachers and the
availability of mentors can breathe new life into the
classroom's instruction.
According to Grandea (2006), he used a clarifying
research methodology that focused on the stress and
methods of coping used by first-year students at
Southville International School and Colleges. There
were 201 understudy responders, who reported feeling
a lot of strain. Academics stood out as the main
stressor. The positive pressure technique was used by
the understudy respondents to reduce stress. The
understudy respondents' reported stress levels and
coping mechanisms were independent of their profiles.
Academic Performance
Assessing how much has been achieved over a specific
amount of time allows for the measurement of
John Patrick L. Arcite
academic success (von Stumm, Hell & Premuzic,
2011). Academic accomplishment is measured by
cumulative GPA and the completion of educational
requirements such secondary school diplomas and
bachelor's degrees. Numerous studies demonstrate that
academic success has a key role in determining
retention and graduation (Ball, Dyer, & Garton, 2002;
Garton, Dyer, & King, 2001; Kennett & Reed, 2009).
Additionally, these studies discovered that a strong
predictor of academic success is typically found to be
the grade point average.
One of the concerns of education students in higher
education institutions is their academic performance. It
is referred to be the end-term grades from the prior
semester that the general weighted average may
support (GWA). Abid (2006) asserts that students'
study habits- their method of learning, whether
methodical, well-organized, or ineffective-serve
primarily the objective of their academic efforts.
Stress has reportedly been a major concern in
academic circles, according to Agolla (2009).
Numerous thinkers have backed extensive research on
stress and come to the conclusion that this subject
requires additional consideration. In their 2003 study
of the anticipated stress among fourth-year
undergraduate students, Radcliff and Lester found that
the stress was exacerbated by assignments, poor
guidance, social pressure, and the need to connect.
Methodology
The descriptive-correlation method was employed in
this study. According to Creswell (2012), in
descriptive-correlational design, the researcher is
concerned in the level to which two variables (or
more) co-vary, where changes in one variable are
reflected in changes in the other
Participants
The participants of the study are 119 college students
from Davao de Oro, Philippines.
Instruments of the Study
The instrument used in this study was a researcher-
made questionnaire. The survey questionnaire is
composed of questions about perceived sources of
stress, including academic, personal, relationship, and
environmental factors. The instrument used in this
study was validated by three internal and two external
experts. It was revised based on the comments and
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Research Article

suggestions of the validators ensuring that the Table 3. Profile of Respondents based on Ethnicity.
instrument assesses what it intends to assess. It was
pilot tested to the twenty respondents for item analysis
of the test questionnaire, and testing the reliability of
the instrument.

Procedures

The researcher wrote a request letter to the Heads of

Higher Education Institution in Davao de Oro for the
study's approval. The data for the administration of the
Level of Perceived Sources of Stress
questionnaire was set through a google form. When
the date was set, the researcher did a brief orientation
This section presents the results to the second
with the students on the nature and scope of the study
statement of the problem that examines the level of
through google meet and after the orientation, the
perceived sources of stress in Academic Factor,
researcher conducted the data collection through Personal Factor, Relationship Factor, and
administering the survey and test questionnaire for Environmental Factor.
both general and professional education. The
researcher then, checked and saved the files in the Table 4. Academic Factor in terms of Increase
google drive for backup files. After collecting the data, Academic Workload and Study Habits
it was organized, tallied and analyzed using the
statistical analysis.

Results

This section presents the findings according to the

study's research questions. Results obtained from the
collected data and the subsequent analyses and
interpretation based on the problems presented.

Respondents' profile in terms of Age, Gender, and

Ethnicity

Table 1. Profile of Respondents based on Age

Table 2. Profile of Respondents based on Gender

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Research Article

Table 5. Personal Factor in terms of Low Self-esteem Table 6. Relationship Factor in terms of Student-
and Lack of Motivation Teacher Relation and Peer Influence

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Research Article

Table 10. Difference between perceived sources of

stress when grouped according to Age

Table 7. Relationship Factor in terms of ICT Problem

and Life Condition and Health Safety

Table 11. Difference between perceived sources of

stress when grouped according to Gender.

Table 12. Difference between perceived sources of

stress when grouped according to Ethnicity.

Discussion

The research's principal goal is to evaluate the

perceived sources of stress in terms of academic,
personal, relationship, and environmental factor of
college students. The principal objectives of this
Table 8. Profile of the Respondents in Terms of Test
research is to explore the impact of perceived sources
Scores of stress on their academic performance. Thus, this
analysis used the descriptive-correlational analysis
approach to define the respondents' profile in terms of
perceived sources of stress and academic performance.
The research also established the magnitude of
difference that occur between and within the variables
in this study in terms of age, gender, and ethnicity.
Specifically, it established a substantial influence
between the respondents' perceived sources of stress
Table9 . Correlation analysis between perceived on their academic performance.
sources of stress and academic performance.
The result shows that there is a significant relationship
between the perceived sources of stress and academic
performance which shows a correlation value of -0.647
(p < .05) and p-value of 0.000. This means that there is
a moderate negative correlation. This implies that if
the perceived sources of stress in terms of academic,
personal, relationship, and environmental factors are
high the lower the academic performance will be.
.

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Psych Educ,2022, 6: 313-320, Document ID: PEMJ434, doi:10.5281/zenodo.7452156, ISSN 2822-4353
Research Article
Thus, the first null hypothesis is rejected.
In their study, Erkutlu & Chafra (2006), they found
that students find the academic atmosphere to be
particularly stressful due to the pressure to perform
well on tests and exams and the time constraints. The
primary cause of stress for teenagers is school, which
can also result in low self-esteem. Low self-esteem is a
major contributing factor to many psychological
issues, including depression and suicide (Nikitha, et al,
2014). In the analysis of the difference of perceived
sources of stress when grouped according to age, the
result shows that there is no significant difference
between perceive sources of stress and age which
shows a p-value of 0.596 (p < .05). This means that
there is no difference on the perceived sources of
stress experienced by the respondents in terms of age,
thus the second null hypothesis is accepted.
In the analysis of the difference of perceived sources
of stress when grouped according to gender, the result
shows that there is no significant difference between
perceived sources of stress and gender which shows a
p-value of 0.859 (p < .05). This means that there is no
difference on the perceived sources of stress
experienced by the respondents in terms of gender.
Thus, the second null hypothesis is accepted. In the
analysis of the difference of perceived sources of stress
when grouped according to ethnicity, the result shows
that there is no significant difference between perceive
sources of stress and ethnicity which shows a p-value
of 0.716 (p < .05). This means that there is no
difference on the perceived sources of stress
experienced by the respondents in terms of ethnicity,
thus the second null hypothesis is accepted.
Conclusion
Several studies consider perceived sources of stress in
terms of academic, personal, relationship, and
environmental factor as significant determinants of the
students' academic performance. Indicators such as
Academic Factors in terms of increase academic
workload and study habits, Personal Factor in terms of
low self-esteem and lack of motivation, Relationship
Factor in terms of student-teacher relation and peer
influence, and last is Environmental Factor in terms of
ICT problems and life condition and health safety.
Based on the results, it indicated that students
perceived sources of stress significantly affect
students’ academic performance; if students are
stressed, they are bound to have less engagement in the
school and avoid themselves to opportunities of
John Patrick L. Arcite
learning and socializing. Students’ academic factors of
stress in terms of increased academic workload and
study habits are seen to be the greatest contributor of
stress to students and eventually leads to the decrease
of their academic performance. Additionally, the new
normal type of education has contributed also to
students’ pressure on information and communication
technology problems and their life condition which
does not suit to the demands of online class. Moreover,
it is essential to boost the students drive and passion
on their journey to ensure academic success. Students
perceived sources of stress must be accordingly dealt
with to avoid future issues in the education system and
the society.
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Affiliations and Corresponding Informations
John Patrick L. Arcite
Davao De Oro State College
New Bataan Branch, Philippines
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