







































Children and Teenagers 
ISSN 2576-3709 (Print) ISSN 2576-3717 (Online) 

Vol. 1, No. 2, 2018 
www.scholink.org/ojs/index.php/ct 

68 
 

Original Paper 

College Stress: Testing the Unidimensionality of a Standardized 

Stress Measuring Inventory Designed to Assess Stress among 

College Students 

Avdi S. Avdija1* 

1 Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Indiana State University, USA 
* Avdi S. Avdija, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Indiana State University, USA 

 
Received: June 1, 2018          Accepted: June 18, 2018         Online Published: June 28, 2018 

doi:10.22158/ct.v1n2p68                         URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.22158/ct.v1n2p68 
 

Abstract 

Stress is a very common and unavoidable emotional strain among college students. The full domain of 

college stress has multiple dimensions, each with a unique perspective. The current study examines the 

unidimensionality and reliability of a 48-items standardized scale designed to measure perceived 

college stress among students. This Perceived Stress Inventory (PSI) consists of five subscales; each 

measuring a unique aspect of college stress. To test of unidimensionality and reliability of PSI, factor 

analysis and psychometric properties were examined. The analyses are based on the data that were 

collected from 302 college students. The results of this study show that the all five subscales of the 

Perceived Stress Inventory (PSI) are reliable and each of them is unidimensional.  

Keywords 

college stress, financial stress, academic stress, social stress, time management, family stress 

 

1. Introduction 

Stress is a natural part of life. Everyone experiences stress at some point in time or another. One 

particular time that many people experience stress is throughout their college experience. It is 

something that can determine their future, where they will meet lifelong friends, meet potential spouses 

and make memories that will last forever. College is also a time when students can obtain mountains of 

debt, struggling to obtain good grades, and other stressors. In the life of the typical college student, 

there are a plethora of factors that may prove difficult for students who find themselves engaged in the 

new and exciting environment that is college. While movies depict this time in life as nothing but a 

party, many students find out the hard way that stress plays a massive role in the life of a young 



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collegiate. In many cases, students face a combined number of stressors that include all different areas 

of their lives. Academia, finances, time management, social, and familial stressors are among those. 

This literature review focuses on these factors and how they impact college students and their stress 

levels. 

1.1 Academic Stressors 

Academic stressors are very common among students. As one progresses in academia, presumably, the 

material which one is studying will increase in difficulty. However, many believe that the academic 

stressors facing college students today are relatable to that of symptoms of Post-Traumatic Stress 

Disorder or PTSD (Woolman, Becker, & Klanecky, 2015). PTSD is commonly associated to life 

instances of intense stress which may cause and individual to develop coping mechanisms in order to 

deal with these symptoms. Research shows that, in such instances of female college students who 

reported they had been exposed to some sort of trauma, including instance of academic trauma, a large 

percentage of these women turned to coping with alcohol in order to subside their symptoms. A number 

of these female students report that their low academic performance is directly related to their coping 

strategies which are maladaptive in nature (Woolman et al., 2015).  

Given that sufferers of PTSD include individuals who have fought in wars and seen things that are 

unimaginable to the average person, including female college students on the list of those sufferers of 

PTSD based off of negative academic performances appears to raise red flags. Nonetheless, stress is 

manifested in different forms. One instance would be the inability of students to properly concentrate, 

absorb information, or the idea that students may lack the interest in the topic of study may increase a 

student’s risk of symptomatic academic stress (Bhujade, 2017). While a simple solution may be to 

encourage students to engage in coursework that appeals to them, many students may find their 

academic path shifting as they navigate the curriculum on their campus. Despite the ability for students 

to add and drop courses, grades may negatively be impacted as well as the timeline of a traditional 

undergraduate student timeline. Students who choose to change their major while enrolled in a different 

program may have to find extra time and money to stay on campus for a longer amount of time which 

can then create additional stressors. According to recent research, the most frequently reported stressor 

within academic is grades and competition (Lee, Kang, &Yum, 2005). Nevertheless, college stress is a 

multifaceted emotional strain.  

1.2 Financial Stressors 

Students often times worry about debt loads and other financial responsibilities that negatively affect 

their well-being. This type of worry is even worse for those with financial difficulties, including 

low-income families, and those first generation college students. Not only is there financial strain on a 

majority of college students, but those who are first generation college students may experience a 

higher influx of stress when determining how and where they will attend a four-year college. In this 



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regard, stress starts even before starting college. In fact, for some perspective students, financial 

stressors can determine if they ever attend or start college and drop out before completing it. Research 

shows that, in comparison to their non-low income counterparts, only about 10% of students in 

low-income areas will obtain a college degree by the age of 25 (Adams, Meyers, & Beidas, 2016). 

Adams et al. (2016), in their study addressed the relationship between the financial strain and several 

outcome variables, including the psychological symptoms, academic, and social integration of students 

using a cross-sectional survey, all amongst first-generation college students. This shows that one type 

of stress, in this case, financial stress, can play the role of a mediating factor, in a negative way, 

affecting other factors such as physiological and psychological well-being.  

Along this line, White and Perrone-McGovern’s (2017) study shows that those students who experience 

high financial stress would have lower levels of career decisions and academic self-efficacy. Thus, 

financial stress has an effect on future choices that students make. Furthermore, financial stress can also 

affect academic performance and retention. According to Trombitas (2012), about one third of students 

admitted that financial stress negatively affected their academic performance. Among the highest 

stress-producing factors were the need to repay loans, the cost of education, borrowing money for 

college, etc. (Trombitas, 2012). Students with higher amounts of student loans are less likely to 

continue college, and likely that they never graduate. Britt, Ammerman, Barrett, and Jone’s (2017) 

study confirm this hypothesis in their resent research, indicating that students who discontinued college 

had higher student loans compared to those who successfully completed or continued college (Britt et 

al., 2017).  

1.3 Time Management Stressors 

Students in college often struggled with time management. Many students find it difficult to balance 

outside life and school. Students who have multiple classes and/or jobs to financially care for 

themselves, find themselves multitasking quite frequently. They tend to struggle with time management 

often because of the responsibility they have placed upon themselves with other things. Although 

school may come first in a student’s life, jobs tend to be equally important factors as well. Not only 

does a student have to excel in school, but at work as well, that is if they want to keep a good work 

history. Many jobs in college towns are willing to work with college students to make their schedule a 

little less hectic; nevertheless that is not always the case. Students must utilize time management wisely 

and prioritize activities accordingly. Thus, time is another aspect of the life of a collegiate may find 

difficult to manage while attempting to go to school and to have a social life at the same time. Macan 

and Shahni (1990) study shows that those who reported they have good time management skills are 

those students who show success in their GPA and academic performance (Macan & Shahni, 1990). 

After studying a group of over 100 undergraduate students, they found that there were many 

correlations between time management and those who reported stress or performance issues.  



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Similarly, Misra and McKean (2000) looked at ways to increase time management skills among young 

people looking at goal-setting, making lists of priorities, organizing their work space, and how those 

undergraduate students perceived their control of time. In this study, a significant finding was the 

differences between gender roles, indicating that females experience stress at a higher level than their 

male counterparts. However, this finding contradicts the findings of a more recently published research 

article by Khatib (2014). According to Khatib, females reported a higher time managements compared 

to males, and higher time management was negatively associated with stress (Khatib, 2014). This 

means, that individuals with higher time management experienced lower stress level.  

1.4 Social Stressors 

On top of schooling, working, and other aspects of life, students must find time to engage friendships 

and relationships outside of those activities. One of the great aspects of the college experience is 

meeting new people. By meeting new people, individuals are able to possibly meet people that may be 

culturally different and build long lasting relationships with such people. Once these relationships are 

built, students find it hard to maintain these relationships due to the fact they find themselves busy with 

other aspects of the college life. Looking at it from another point of view, students also feel that they 

are not the only ones busy, so are their friends. Whether their friends are on campus with them, or 

different university, or back in their hometown, often times students struggle trying to stay connected or 

reconnecting with their friends.  

Students must find time out of their busy schedules to do things for themselves socially. As mentioned 

above, making time to have a social life in college can cause stress when one is trying to remain social, 

but also focus on school and perhaps work. Many scholars connect stress, which may be social in 

nature, to drug use among college students. Coleman and Trunzo look at over 200 undergraduate and 

graduate students that aged 18-24 in order to determine minor drug use (alcohol and marijuana) and 

more serious drug use (narcotics). By using self-report tools, researchers were able to gather 

information concerning stress levels and drug use. Their study found that social stress and neuroticism, 

which was found to be a common trait of drug users, in combination, were largely able to predict total 

drug use (Coleman & Trunzo, 2015). So, in addition to dealing with social stressors that face college 

students, those who display neurotic tendencies are more likely to engage in these risky behaviors 

while in college, further contributing to failures in college.  

1.5 Family Stressors 

After examining those stressors that are determined to be financial concerning, the ability of parents to 

be able to send their children to a university while not breaking the budget, this can also be an applied 

family stressor to college students. Perhaps students feel guilty for using what little money their parents 

have in order to send them to school. This can create a stressor amongst the family unit whether or not 

it actually exists. 



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In addition to these notions, students may feel that their families have higher expectations than what a 

student may feel he/she is able to realistically achieve. Katz and Nelson (2007) tested a hypothesis 

regarding those students who feel as though their needs in regards to parental care have not been met 

while pursuing their undergraduate degrees. These additional familial stressors may induce a greater 

amount of self-criticism on behalf of the student (Katz & Nelson, 2007). After gathering information 

from undergraduate students using the self-reporting Levels of Self-Criticism Scale, they found that 

there was a correlation between family stress and self-criticism, which may then affect a student’s 

likelihood of being successful in the secondary education ventures. Moreovver, family stress can also 

be manifested in a form of a broken quality of relationship between the family and the student, which 

correlates with stress (Yazedjian, Toews, & Navarro, 2009; Putwain, Woods, & Symes, 2010). In other 

words, a good quality relationship between the family and the student acts as a stress-reducing factor 

(Anders, 2011).  

 

2. Summary 

College can be a very stressful time for students and families alike. Academic stressor, financial 

stressors, time management stressors, social stressors, and family stressors can create additional 

challenges for those students attempting to be successful while working towards their academic and 

career goals. As all of these studies show, perceived stress, regardless of what type of stress it may be, 

can have a negative impact on college students and their abilities to maintain a positive self-image. 

These stressors may cause college students to engage in risky behaviors, such as drug use, which can 

create additional issues for students, can lead to problems with retention, etc. All in all, stressors, 

whether they are real or perceived, can create additional issues for students who are attempting to have 

a successful secondary educational experience. 

 

3. The Present Study 

As stated in the abstract, the primary objective of this research study is to determine whether the 

subscales of a 48-item Perceived Stress Inventory (PSI) designed to measure stress among college 

students are unidimensional or not. The second objective is to measure the reliability of the survey 

instrument. The first objective will be achieved by examining the results of factor analysis and the 

second objective by examining the psychometric properties of subscales. Building on previous studies, 

the measuring inventory that is tested in this study has been refined and re-constructed to broaden the 

domain of the perceived stress inventory (Note 1). The primary base of this inventory is the 1999’s 

Student Stress Survey (SSS) (Ross, Niebling, & Heckert, 1999), as well as Insel and Roth’s 1995 stress 

inventory. However, the current measure (PSI) is reorganized and more complete.  

 



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4. Methods 

4.1 The Data and Participants 

The data were collected from a sample of 302 college students. Of which, 6.6% were freshmen, 28.8% 

were sophomores, 39.1% juniors, and 25.5% seniors. The majority of them were between the ages of 

18 and 22 years old (89.7%, M = 21.2, SD = 3.03). In terms of gender, 44.7% were females and 55.3% 

were males. The racial composition of the sample is a good representation of the university from which 

the data were collected. The descriptive statistics show that 70.2% of the participants were whites, 

15.9% African Americans, 4% Hispanic/Latinos, 2.3% Asians, and the rest were other races.  

4.2 The Data Analysis  

Since the primary objective of this research study was to determine whether or not the subscales of 

perceived stress among college students are unidimensional, the analyses focused primarily on looking 

at the factor analysis, including the Scree Plots for the subscales. However, the first step in this process 

was to determine the reliability of the composite measures for each scale. The reliability of the 

perceived stress subscales were measured by looking at the internal consistency and stability of scores 

within each subscale equated with Cronbach’s alpha (DeVellis, 1991). The next step included factor 

analysis. This analysis also include the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of the sampling adequacy 

(Kaiser, 1974), and Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity to determine that the correlation between items within 

each subscale is statistically different from zero. The last step that contributed significantly to the main 

objective of this study was the Scree Plot for each subscale. The reason for including Scree Plots was to 

show a visual display of the dimensionality of each subscale. The “elbow” on the Scree Plot shows 

whether or not the subscales are one-factor solutions or multiple-factor solutions.  

 

5. Results 

The Perceived Stress Instrument (PSI) that was designed to measure stress among college students has 

48 items total. This inventory is designed to measure stressors in five different areas: financial stressors 

(7 items), time management stressors (9 items), social stressors (12 items), academic stressors (13 

items), and family stressors (7 items). In terms of content validity of this inventory, these five 

dimensions describe the full domain of perceived college stress among students. Each item on these 

scales is measured on a 10-point Lickert scale, ranging from 0 (no stress) to 10 (high stress). See 

Appendix A for a complete list of items.   

5.1 Reliability Analysis 

Reliability of a measuring instrument refers to the consistency of that measuring instrument when it’s 

used on repeated trials (Carmines & Zellrn, 1979). It is the first step in assessing the validity of the 

measuring instrument, which is not assessed in this study. In other words, reliability is the prerequisite 

for validity of a measuring instrument. In this study, the purpose of testing the reliability of subscales 



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was to see the relationship between individual items within each subscale. That way, the subscales 

consistently reflect the constructs that are measured. The reliability of subscales was assessed by 

looking at the Crombach’s Alpha levels, which is widely known as the test of internal consistency of 

scales. Crombach’s Alpha tests the average correlation of items in the measuring instrument (Santos, 

1999).  

Crombach’s Alpha values range from 0 to 1, and values that approach 1 have a higher internal 

consistency, which are desirable for every measuring instrument. Since stress is a psychological 

construct, a 0.70 would be the cut-off value of internal consistency measure (Kline, 1999; DeVellis, 

2003). Based on this cut-off value as a base measure for assessing the reliability, the Crombach’s Alpha 

level for each subscale, as shown in Table 1, is adequate. In fact, most subscales show an internal 

consistency value of 0.08 or above. This means that the measuring instrument is expected to produce 

reliable results when used in repeated trials. Furthermore, even if these subscales are used independent 

of one another (i.e., some researchers may consider using them selectively to measure a particular 

dimension of college stress), they still produce reliable results.  

 

Table 1. Cronbach’s Alpha for Each Subscale in the Perceived Stress Inventory (PSI) 

Subscales Crombach’s Alpha Number of Items 

Financial stress .891 7 items 

Time management stress .871 9 items 

Social stress .820 12 items 

Academic stress .906 13 items 

Family stress .739 7 items 

 

5.2 Factor Analysis  

The purpose of using factor analysis in this study was to uncover the underlying structure (Norris & 

Lecavalier, 2010) of this stress measuring inventory designed to specifically measure college stress 

among students. To put it another way, factor analysis is a statistical technique that helps identify 

whether the subscales of this inventory are one-factor solution or multi-factor solution. It is one of the 

techniques used to determine whether the subscales are unidimensional or not. A unidimensional scale 

is one that measures only one thing/dimension. If a scale or subscale measures only one dimension of 

stress, then it is considered a one-factor solution scale/subscale, which is a desirable outcome for 

research purposes.  

Before looking at the eigenvalues on Table 3, it is important to review the results of 

Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of sampling adequacy (KMO) and Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity, both sets 



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of results are presented in Table 2 below. As stated in the “Data Analysis” section above, the KMO is 

considered a test of sampling adequacy, and the Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity measures whether the 

variables in the composite measure are correlated statistically different than zero. For the BTS test, the 

correlation matrix of variables should be statistically significant compared to the identity matrix. The 

significance level of Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity should be less than .05 to be considered adequate.  

The KMO values range from 0 to 1. Higher values, typically those that approach 1, are desirable 

because they indicate that using factor analysis would be an adequate statistical technique to explore 

the data. The cut-off value of KMO is 0.50 (Field, 2009). Some researchers argue that the cut-off value 

should be 0.60 (Tabachnick & Fidell, 2014).  

Based on the above parameters for the KMO and BTS, the data in Table 2 show that all subscales have 

adequate scores. The KMO for each subscale is way above the cut-off value of .05/.60, and the BTS is 

statistically significant at p < .000, indicating the correlation between items in subscales is statistically 

significant and different from zero.  

 

Table 2. Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy and Bartlett’s Test of Sphericity 

Subscales KMO 

BTS  

Chi-Square 

BTS  

Sig. 

BTS  

df 

Financial stress .879 1230.52 .000 21 

Time management stress .832 1323.18 .000 36 

Social stress .833 931.87 .000 66 

Academic stress .901 2249.86 .000 78 

Family stress .776 423.54 .000 21 

 

Table 3 below shows the eigenvalues for the first three components of each subscale. Ideally, a 

scale/subscale with only one eigenvalue above 1 is considered unidimensional. However, even if there 

are more than one eigenvalue with the value of 1 or above, the first component with the highest 

eigenvalue should explain a significantly larger portion of the variance compared to other components 

with eighenvelues 1 or above. The factor analysis in Table 3 show that the financial stress subscale has 

only one eigenvalue of 4.292 (above 1), explaining a significantly larger portion of the variance 

(61.31%). The time management stress subscale had two eigenvalues above 1. The first eighenvalue 

(4.493) explained 49.92% of the variance, whereas the second eigenvalue explained 12.60% of the 

variance. The social stress subscale has two eigenvalues above 1. The first explains 34.41% of the 

variance, and the second explains 11.35% of the variance. The academic stress subscale has two 

eigenvalues above 1 also. The first explains 48.47% of the variance and the second explains 13.03%. 



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The family stress subscale has two eigenvalues above 1, with the first one explaining 39.74% of the 

variance and the second one explaining 13.03% of the variance. Overall, the first eigenvalue of each 

subscale is significantly larger than the second one, which is a convincing piece of empirical evidence 

to conclude that these subscales are a one-factor solution scales.  

 

Table 3. Factor Analysis for All Subscales 

Subscales  

Eigenvalues for the First Three 

components  

% of Variance for the First Three 

eigenvalues 

1 2 3 1 2 3 

Financial stress 4.292 .815 .583 61.31% 11.64% 8.32% 

Time management stress 4.493 1.134 .978 49.92% 12.60% 10.87% 

Social stress 4.129 1.136 .910 34.41% 11.35% 9.01% 

Academic stress 6.301 1.695 .848 48.47% 13.03% 6.52% 

Family stress 2.782 1.208 .831 39.74% 17.25% 11.87% 

Note. Extraction Method: Principle Component Analysis with varimax rotation. 

 

The Scree Plots presented in Figure 1 show a visual display of computed eigenvalues that are presented 

in Table 3. Even though this statistical technique is considered somewhat not a clear decision-making 

model in research (see Courtney, 2013), it is one of the best visual displays that can be used to 

determine the unidimensionality of a measuring instrument. Based on the Scree Plot display of 

eigenvalues, the subscales are considered a one-factor solution (e.g., unidimensional). The “elbow” on 

the Scree Plot represents a sharp change on the eighenvalues with the first component significantly 

different than other components. If there is only one component above the elbow, then the 

scale/subscale is considered unidimensional, measuring only one dimension of, in this case, college 

stress. The Scree Plots in Figure 1, coupled with the percent of variance for the first eigenvalue of each 

subscale in Table 3, clearly show that, for most subscales, the number of components above the elbow 

is only one, which is a good indication of unidimensionality of subscales.  

 



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Figure 1. Scree Plot Showing Eigenvalues for Each Components of Subscales, in Factor 

Extraction of the Data from 302 Subjects 

 

6. Discussion 

There are many scales that have been developed to measure college stress, but not all of them are as 

complete as the PSI inventory that’s tested in this study. Some of them have 14 items designed to 

measure college stress (Civitici, 2015). Brown and Blankson (2013), for example, used an 18-item 

inventory to measure college stress, but their scale focused on specific race; particularly focusing on 

colleges students stress for black women. Oh, Blondin, Cochran, and Williams (2011) tested an 11-item 

College Student Stress Scale inventory developed by Feldt (2008). However, one inherited weakness of 

that scale is that it does not include the full domain of college stress. Thus, it lacks content validity. 

Other researchers have developed and used stress inventories, but again most of them are area-focused 

inventories with one or two dimensions of stress (i.e., measuring only academic stress, college life 

stress, a combination of two different dimensions, etc.). Such scales were used by Struthers, Perry, and 

Menec (2000) focusing on academic stress, Rocha-Singh’s (1994) GSI-R inventory focusing on 

environmental, academic, and family dimensions of stressors; Burge’s (2009) 22-items scale focusing 

on three dimensions of stress: academic stress, time-related stress, and social-environmental stress, etc.  



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The perceived stress inventory that is tested in this study has 48 items, measuring five unique domains 

of college stress (see Appendix A). This PSI inventory measures financial stress, academic stress, 

social stress, time management stress, and family stress. It has a very broad domain, thus contributing 

to an advanced content validity of this stress inventory. The analyses in this study show that the 

48-items Perceived Stress Inventory (PSI) designed to measure college stress is a reliable measure. 

More importantly, what comes out of this current study is that all five subscales are unidimensional. 

They can be used individually to measure a specific segment of college stress, a combination of two or 

more, or all together to measure the full domain of college stress.  

 

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Note 

Note 1. This current study does not test the construct validity of this stress-measuring inventory. It only 

tests the reliability and unidimensionality of subscales within the 48-item inventory designed to 

measure stress among college students. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 



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Appendix A 

Perceived Stress Scale (PSI) 

This inventory contains statements dealing with student-life stressors. Read it carefully and respond 

to each statement as it relates to you as a student.  

Use the 10-point scale to rank the level of stress each college stressor brings to your life 

experience as a student. Circle only ONE answer for each statement.  

Financial Stressors 

No Stress                   Moderate               

High Stress 

1. Worried about financial responsibilities  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

2. Borrowing money for college 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

3. The need to repay loans 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

4. The cost of tuition 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

5. The cost of textbooks  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

6. Loss of financial support from college 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

7. The need to find a job after school 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

Time Management Stressors 

No Stress                   Moderate               

High Stress 

8. Difficulties managing both school and 

work at the same time 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

9. Difficulties finding time to study 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

10. I’m unable to control the time I spend  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

11. Hard time getting papers done on time 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

12. Missed too many classes 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

13. Not getting enough time to sleep 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

14. Sleeping too much 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

15. Change in eating habits 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

16. Change in sleeping habits 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

Social Stressors 

No Stress                   Moderate               

High Stress 

17. Being on one’s own in a new 

environment – with new responsibilities  
0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

18. Awareness of one’s sexual identity 

and orientation  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

19. New love interest  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 



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20. Hard time making friends at school 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

21. Problems with boyfriend / girlfriend  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

22. Change in social activities  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

23. Making decisions, on a higher level 

than one is used to  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

24. Substance abuse  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

25. Minor violations of the law (e.g. 

traffic ticket) 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

26. First term in college  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

27. Exposure to new people, ideas, and 

temptations  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

28. Problems with roommate  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

Academic Stressors 

No Stress                   Moderate               

High Stress 

29. Greater academic demands  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

30. Failing grade in an important or 

required class  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

31. Change in college (transfer)  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

32. Not being able to take good notes in 

classes 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

33. Academic probation (or fear of being 

placed) 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

34. Serious conflict with instructor  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

35. Lower than expected grades  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

36. Change in major  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

37. Increased workload from college  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

38. Course load  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

39. Preparing for exams 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

40. Writing term papers 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

41. Keeping up with the required readings  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

Family Stressors 

No Stress                   Moderate               

High Stress 

42. I don’t get enough support from my 

family 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 



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43. Being away from home, often for the 

first time  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

44. Parental issues (child care issues) 0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

45. Preparing for life after graduation  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

46. My parents’ expectation of my grades  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

47. Serious argument with significant 

other  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

48. Parental alcoholism and family 

dysfunctions  0----1-----2-----3-----4-----5-----6-----7----8-----9----10 

 
 

 
 

 


