This is an open access article under the CC-BY-SA license. REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020, 66-77 Available online at: http://journal.uny.ac.id/index.php/reid Analysis of factors of students’ stress of the English Language Department *1Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih; 1Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro; 1Sudiyono 1Faculty of Languages and Arts, Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta Jl. Colombo No. 1, Karangmalang, Depok, Sleman, Yogyakarta 55281, Indonesia *Corresponding Author. E-mail: siwikarmadi@uny.ac.id Submitted: 12 January 2020 | Revised: 2 June 2020 | Accepted: 3 June 2020 Abstract The study is aimed at further describing psychological factors inducing academic stresses of the students of the English Education Department, Yogyakarta State University (EED-YSU). The study is a continuation of a previous study that identifies sources of academic stress of students of EED-YSU. Data collection is conducted by an on-line survey technique. Confirmatory factor analysis is used for the data analyses. The results show six factors that become sources of students’ academic stresses, namely academic demands, parent-child relationship, traumatic experiences during childhood, peer pressures, financial matters, and self-expectancy. It is expected that other studies involving other factors of students’ academic stress be conducted to give further information on the topic. Keywords: psychological factors, academic stress, student’s productivity How to cite: Kurniasih, S., Putro, N., & Sudiyono, S. (2020). Analysis of factors of students’ stress of the English Language Department.REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 66-77. doi:https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567. Introduction Evidence suggests that academic stress is among the most important factors that af- fect university students’ success. Demanding academic assignments, practicums, or theories alike, are often alleged as the causes for the elevation of students’ stresses. A large number of classes that the students take in one semes- ter also often causes students to not be able to adequately focus in classes so that they are not able to achieve the expected instructional ob- jectives. The level of students’ academic is doubly worsened by the present-day advance- ment of technology (Gabre & Kumar, 2012). The high level of students’ academic stresses unconsciously affects the students’ physical and mental health as often seen from their complaints of common tiredness. In fact, the phenomenon is like the tip of the ice burgh: students bear a huge haunting burden, uncon- sciously. A study by the National College Health Assessment in 2014 shows that 55.5 percent of the students participating in the survey ex- perience depression above the average level of the other students; in the category of high concern (American College Health Associa- tion - National College Health Assessment, 2016). Students have difficulty focusing in class and doing instructional tasks since they are too worried about small things that hap- pen in their daily life, causing an increase in their stress level in their academic life. A simi- lar study conducted in 2015 draws a similar conclusion that 20 percent of students seek psychological consultation and treatment for problems related to their academic stresses (Henriques, 2014). https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.id https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 - 67 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) Academic stress is experienced alike in students of the English majors. Differences in the cultures of the native and target languages, learning difficulties, and anxiety of losing self- identities are among the heavy burdens for the students of English as a foreign language (Hashemi, 2011; Horwitz, Horwitz, & Cope, 1986). These problems have been identified as triggers of English students’ feeling stresses. The level of academic stress of univer- sity students has long been studied (Yeh & Inose, 2003). The study emphasizes that most international students experienced anxieties, and English fluency is among the predictors of university students’ academic stress. It is these anxieties that contribute to the factors that elevate academic stresses (Leyva, 2003; Mezzacappa & Katkin, 2002). These anxieties have caused students’ self-confidence to de- crease to a low level. Consequently, their per- formance is not maximal. On one other side, worries of not being able to teach English in front of the class also contribute to the stress level of these English teacher candidates (McNeil, 2016), in as much as they are demanded to master the instruc- tional materials and manage the classroom. Such anxieties can elevate to a level so high that they are often exaggerated. This anxiety does not give a good condition to students since such over-felt worries raise students’ ac- ademic stress that, subsequently, give negative influences on their physical and mental health. Possible worse impacts are the high threats of a high drop-out and, in few cases, students’ thoughts and intentions to end their life (Ang & Huan, 2006; Robotham & Julian, 2006). Although extensive research has been carried out on students' academic stress, few writers have been able to draw on any sys- tematic research into the factors affecting the academic stress of students majoring in Eng- lish Education Department. Thus, this study is aimed at identifying factors causing aca- demic stresses to elevate in students of the English Department of YSU. Levels of aca- demic stresses will also be stress long relevant variables such as gender, Grade Point Aver- age (GPA), years of entrance, parents’ educa- tion backgrounds, degrees students tend to obtain, and socio-economic status. Definition of Stress From the field of educational psychol- ogy, a number of definitions of stress are found. As a first definition, Butt, Weinberg, and Horn (2003) define stress as an imbalance or gap between one’s demands, physically and psychologically, for achievement and one’s abilities to achieve it. The demands can either be internal or external. Failure in the fulfill- ment of the demands will cause physical or psychological impacts. In the same line of thoughts, Sarafino (2008) states that stress is in an individual’s condition wherein there is a perceived gap between demands that come from the inside of the individual, psychologi- cally, biologically, or socially, as a result of his interaction with the environment. Stress is a condition that influences one’s physical or psychological states because of pressure from either the inside or outside of the individual. Another definition is given by Suldo, Shaunessy, Thalji, Michalowski, and Shaffer (2009) who state that stress is an individual’s feeling of pressure in responding to demands that come from the inside of the individual or from the environment. This state can be iden- tified from the levels of blood pressures, heart pulses, or neurotransmitter hormones as an individual’s physiological response against stress. Emphasizing on the individual’s emo- tions, Folkman (2013) defines stress as an individual’s condition in which the individual experiences an over-sized emotional demand so that he/she finds difficulties in effectively functioning all his competences. This condi- tion may give rise to psychological symptoms like chronic tiredness, depression, anxieties, and anger. Stress can also be defined as an adaptive response to differences in an individ- ual’s characteristics from external pressures and demands, leading to his physical and psy- chological conditions (DeFrank & Ivancevich, 1998). From the foregoing discussion, it can be summarized that stress can be defined as an individual’s mental or psychological distur- bances as a result of pressures. These pres- sures come from the individual’s failures in satisfying his demands or desires, internal or external. https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono 68 - Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) Academic Stress Academic stress can be defined as a stu- dent’s perception of his over-loaded knowl- edge, concepts, and skills that he must master against the lack of time that he has to achieve them (Misra & Castillo, 2004). A student’s academic stress is mostly related to academic tensions the student faces. This condition causes the emergence of distortion in the student’s thoughts that influences his physical, emotional, and behavioral pattern of actions. This distortion can come from the student’s own demands or those of the environment. Instances of these demands are daily or weekly assignments, final examinations, and competitions among students in obtaining achievements. A student’s academic stress can trigger distress that is manifested in various negative psychological behaviors. The discrepancies between what needs to be achieved in knowledge, concepts, and skills and the abilities to achieve them (Misra & McKean, 2000) cause the student to feel inadequate or uncomfortable in his interactive activities. Another definition is related to the student’s misperception on his academic loads he needs to finish resulting in physical and psychological problems. In relation to the types of academic stress, Suldo et al. (2009) mention several sources. These sources are, among others, academic requirements, parent-child relations, childhood traumatic experiences, peer pres- sures, extra-curricular activities, and struggles to achieve high academic standards. Each of them is elaborated as follows. Academic Requirements This source of academic stress can be of many forms. These can be (1) fulfillment of academic assignments such as daily quiz- zes, weekly tasks, and mid- and semester tests; (2) individual time management of individual academic assignments; and (3) over-expecta- tion by self, peer, and lecturers for higher aca- demic achievement. Relation between Parents and Students Causes of academic stress are often re- lated to the relationship between parents and students concerning academic matters. This often arises from a variety of conflicts be- tween parents and students, such as time management related to the student’s responsi- bilities in the household. Unpleasant Early Adulthood Experience The next source of students’ academic stress is related to changes in the lifestyle of the students during young adulthood. Such causes can be in the form of the need for safety, the transition from school life to uni- versity life, loss of a family member, aware- ness of more global environmental problems such as drug abuse, and the community envi- ronment which itself experience stress. Peer Relationship Often, the source of academic stress comes from matters related to peer relation- ships. This can be in the form of problems with close friends or partners, uncomfortable atmosphere in peer relation, and pressures or threats from friends. Domestic or Family Problems Households are abounding that they have an impact that leads to academic stress. Examples of these are conflicts between par- ents, parents’ divorces, and others. Such prob- lems cause students to feel unable to concen- trate well on academic matters. Extra-curricular Activities Students’ activities outside the class- room can also turn out to cause students’ aca- demic stress. These may be in the forms of students’ anxieties in their lack of sport or art skills, poor time management concerning cur- ricular and extracurricular commitments, and personal needs such as eating and sleeping patterns. Academic Endeavours One source of academic stress is related to students’ strains in fulfilling their academic commitments (Suldo et al., 2009). These in- clude low students’ proficiency and skills, missing classes and other instructional activ- ities, and students’ health problems. Further, McPherson (2009) relates this type of aca- demic stress into the following. https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 - 69 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) Underachievers and Overachievers Underachievers are those students who are not yet able to achieve the expected mini- mal competencies in order to pass classes. In fact, these students are expected to work hard, by their own interest and motivation, and supported by families and friends. It is this demand that gives these underachievers academic stress. On the other hand, the over- achievers are those students who make it to the above level of students’ average. Often, they need to sacrifice their sleep and fun times to do that. For some of them, the lack of time for having recreative activities can cause aca- demic stress. Appreciation or Reward Conferring awards to some students or groups of students may oftentimes induce academic stress, both for the achieving and non-achieving students. Formerly, the award- winning has drained from them too much effort and energy that they do not have time to do other things such as recreation and ex- tracurricular activities. For the latter, over- expectation to gain such achievement is not backed up by their abilities and efforts to do so. Loss of Rest and Recreation Loss of time for rest and recreation consequently causes academic stress. Rest and recreation are needed to loosen their thoughts and muscles and recharge their energy for optimum concentration and work. Expectancy This is closely related to the reward matter. High demands from self or family to achieve well can become a quick cause of aca- demic stress. For a high proportion of stu- dents, a high GPA is a fixed price, mandatory over everything else. Many students stake all their time and energy for high GPAs resulting in burn-outs that trigger academic stress. Class Assignment or Project This derives from two possibilities: un- clear criteria and over-sized amounts for the assignment or project, and either one can cause academic stress. This condition is often contra-productive as students will feel bur- dened and frightened when they are not yet able to complete their assignments. Based on the foregoing discussion, the framework of the study can be proposed. It is presented in Figure 1. Figure 1. Research Framework https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono 70 - Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) Method The study was a correlational survey aimed at revealing the factors that lead to academic stress within students of the English Education Department at Yogyakarta State University (EED YSU). The research design was of the quantitative method based on sur- vey data. The research subjects were students of EED YSU of the fourth semester and above. The choice of these students was based on the assumption that the students had taken all the knowledge and skill classes and some of the content classes. The total number of research participants amounted to 135 students coming from semester 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12. They completed the survey instru- ment online during April and May 2019 using computer sets, cellphones, or other gadgets. Data collection used the close-type sur- vey technique adapted from Calaguas (2012). The instrument was designed to obtain in- depth information on students’ perceptions of the factors causing academic stress during their study in EED YSU. Raw data were sub- jected to an SPSS software program for stat- istical analyses. Data were subsequently ana- lyzed using the Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) technique. An ANOVA procedure was used to compare differences in academic stresses in view of the demographic variables of Educational Aspiration, GPA, and Gender. The study was conducted in the vicinity of EED YSU. Findings and Discussion Demographic information supplied by the research participants consists of Gender, Educational Aspiration, and GPA. Frequen- cies and percentages are presented in Table 1. Table 1 shows that most of the respon- dents were students of the English Language Education Study Program. The data shows that most of the students of the English Lan- guage Education Study Program were female (77.8%). Almost half of the respondents (48.1%) show an educational aspiration of the S2 level (Master or Graduate). Over half of the participants (53.3%) have a current GPA of higher than 3.51. Results of the CFA The CFA on MPlus 7.2 software pro- gram is to determine the fit of the four criteria of Comparative Fit Index (CFI), Tucker- Lewis index (TLI), Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA), Standardized Root Mean Square Residual (SRMR), and the chi-square (Bentler, 1990; Hu & Bentler, 1999; Tabachnick, Fidell, & Osterlind, 2007). A CFI < 0.90 indicates that there is not enough fit, while a CFI ≥ 0.90 indicates there is enough or almost perfect fit for the model (Bentler, 1990; Hu & Bentler, 1995; Hu & Bentler, 1999; Wang & Wang, 2012). The Tucker- Lewis index (TLI) is to know whether the model is less or more than estimated. The same value is used, i.e., a CFI ≥ 0.90 indicates that the model has enough or almost perfect fit (Bentler, 1990; Hu & Bentler, 1995; Hu & Bentler, 1999; Wang & Wang, 2012). Mean- while, the RMSEA and SRMR is also used to identify whether the model is fit as viewed from the initial EFA model. An RMSEA and SRMR index of <.05 is regarded as evidence that the model is enough or almost perfect (Bentler, 1990; Hu & Bentler, 1995; Hu & Bentler, 1999; Wang & Wang, 2012). Table 1. Research Respondents Frequency Percentage Gender Female 105 77.8 Male 30 22.2 Educational Aspiration Undergraduate 19 14.1 Graduate 65 48.1 Post graduate 51 37.8 GPA 2.51-3.00 2 1.5 3.01-3.50 60 44.4 3.51-4.00 72 53.3 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 - 71 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) Table 2. Results of the CFA on Mplus 7.2 Item Factor 1 2 3 4 5 6 V 32 0.469 V 33 0.688 V 34 0.55 V 35 0.524 V 36 0.784 V 37 0.883 V 39 0.732 V 40 0.804 V 41 0.614 V 42 0.751 V 43 0.664 V 45 0.8 V 47 0.873 V 48 0.753 V 49 0.468 V 51 0.63 V 52 0.829 V 53 0.767 V 54 0.929 V 55 0.753 Alpha 0.751 0.732 0.744 0.850 0.787 0.720 Notes: Factor 1: academic demands; Factor 2: parent-child relationship; Factor 3: childhood trauma; Factor 4: peer pressure; Factor 5: financial; and Factor 6: self-expectancy Figure 2. Results of CFA https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono 72 - Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) The results of the CFA by the Mplus 7.2 procedure show that the research data are congruent with the model that is assumed to be based on the theories related to academic stress (Suldo et al., 2009). There are six factors found to be causes of academic stress. The 6- factor/dimension model representing the aca- demic-stress sources is regarded as a good model (x2 = 219.128, df = 155, RMSEA = .055, SRMR= .067, CFI = .932, and TLI = .916). Factor loadings for each of the survey items are presented in Table 2. Table 2 shows that all the 20 survey items have good loadings, ranging from 0.468 to 0.929. The reliability measurement on the SPSS 22 application also shows good scores, ranging from 0.720 to 0.850. These analysis results show that the six factors represent the academic-stress sources factors, as suggested in the earlier study by Suldo et al. (2009). The six factors are elabo- rated as follows, and the details of these six factors are shown in Figure 2. Factor 1: Academic Demands To fulfill academic assignments, stu- dents face a number of difficulties. Some of these are related to finding materials and ref- erences for classes, finishing out final assign- ments or projects, preparing materials and media for class presentation, and studying for mid- and final examinations. Factor 2: Parent-child Relationship This factor can come in some forms. Among others, some parents or guardians do not give full support to their children’s stud- ies, those who lay excessive academic expecta- tions of their children, and those who are not quite open in terms of family relationships. Factor 3: Childhood Trauma Some respondents express their trauma- tic experiences during their childhood. Most of these are related to being bullied by their peer, love affairs, accidents, and guilty feelings of their wrong-doings. Factor 4: Peer Pressure Problems with peer pressure can come in identical forms. Some of these are related to personal matters in a peer relationship, quarrel, bullying, being isolated by their close friends, and being ignored. Factor 5: Financial Problems in this matter are mostly re- lated to financial management. The common problems are carelessness in spending, unex- pected expenses, zero balance in the bank ac- count, and debts to friends or neighbors. Factor 6: Self Expectancy This factor may not be seen on the surface; however, it gives most of the heaviest burdens to students. This problem is mainly derived from students’ own self-expectation to be best in front of their parents, relatives, and neighbors. The six factors of students’ academic- stress sources analyzed in the study are found to surface as have been expected. However, it is undeniable that there are still many other factors that are possible. The CFA is followed up by analyses of each factor using recorded scores for testing of differences. Results of T-test and ANOVA Testing of differences is done to know whether there are differences in stress sources from the research variables: Gender, GPA, and Educational Aspiration. The GPA is di- vided into three categories: low (2.51-3.000, medium (3.01-3.50), and high (3.51-4.00). Educational aspiration is divided into three: undergraduate (S1), graduate (S2), and doctor- ate (S3). The results of the tests of the dif- ferences are presented in Table 3, Table 5, and Table 7. Differences in Gender Table 3 presents the results of the t- analysis for the equality of means of the six factors against Gender. The results of the t- analyses in Table 3 show significant differ- ences among the five of the six factors of aca- demic stress. Meanwhile, Table 4 shows that female students tend to report more problems than male students in the parent-child re- lationnship, childhood traumatic experiences, peer pressures, financial problems, and self- expectancy. https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 - 73 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) Table 3. Results of the t-test on Gender t-test for Equality of Means t df Sig. (2-tailed) Factor 1 Equal variances assumed 1.892 133 .061 Equal variances not assumed 1.608 38.612 .116 Factor 2 Equal variances assumed 2.790 133 .006 Equal variances not assumed 3.070 54.637 .003 Factor 3 Equal variances assumed 2.274 133 .025 Equal variances not assumed 2.521 55.370 .015 Factor 4 Equal variances assumed 3.275 133 .001 Equal variances not assumed 3.692 57.088 .000 Factor 5 Equal variances assumed 2.294 133 .023 Equal variances not assumed 2.421 50.872 .019 Factor 6 Equal variances assumed 2.671 133 .009 Equal variances not assumed 2.677 47.020 .010 Table 4. Descriptive Statistics of Each Factor Gender N Mean Factor 1 Female 105 .0262 Male 30 -.0916 Factor 2 Female 105 .1156 Male 30 -.4047 Factor 3 Female 105 .0863 Male 30 -.3021 Factor 4 Female 105 .1096 Male 30 -.3835 Factor 5 Female 105 .0421 Male 30 -.1472 Factor 6 Female 105 .0804 Male 30 -.2813 Table 5. Results of the F-test on GPA ANOVA Sum of Square df Mean Square F Sig. Factor 1 Between Groups 1.409 2 .704 8.446 .000 Within Groups 10.923 131 .083 Total 12.332 133 Factor 2 Between Groups 1.881 2 .941 1.097 .337 Within Groups 112.364 131 .858 Total 114.245 133 Factor 3 Between Groups 5.988 2 2.994 4.471 .013 Within Groups 87.722 131 .670 Total 93.710 133 Factor 4 Between Groups 2.445 2 1.223 2.183 .117 Within Groups 73.386 131 .560 Total 75.832 133 Factor 5 Between Groups .181 2 .090 .544 .582 Within Groups 21.763 131 .166 Total 21.944 133 Factor 6 Between Groups .629 2 .315 .698 .499 Within Groups 59.017 131 .451 Total 59.646 133 Results of the F. test on GPA Table 5 presents the F test results for the six research variables of the students’ aca- demic-stress factors against GPA. The results of the ANOVA as shown in Table 5 indicate that there are significant differences that are found in two of the factors, if viewed from https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono 74 - Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) the GPA, namely, the academic demands and childhood trauma. Table 6 shows that students with a GPA of 3.51 and above tend to have higher academic demands and experience more se- vere childhood traumatic experiences than those with a GPA of 3.01- 3.50. There is no significant difference in the two factors be- tween students with a GPA of 3.51-4.00 and those with a GPA of 3.01-3.50. Results of the F. test on Educational Aspiration Table 7 shows the results of the mean differences test among the six variable factors against educational aspirations. ANOVA test results in Table 7 show significant differences are found in two of the six variables: academic demands and parent-child relationship. Table 8 shows that students who pursue an S3 education level report to have higher academic demands and heavier problems in parent-child relationship than those pursuing for an S2 level. No significant difference is found in these two-factor variables between students with an S1 level than either S2 or S3. From the data analysis results, especially the CFA and tests of mean differences, the sources of students’ academic stresses consist of six factors: academic demands, parent-child relationships, traumatic on childhood experi- ences, peer pressure, and self-expectancy. There are significant differences in some fac- tors between male and female students, be- tween students with high GPA and medium GPA, and between students who have an educational aspiration of the S2 and S3 levels. Table 6. Results of the Post-hoc Analyses on Differences against GPA Dependent Variable (I) GPA (J) GPA Mean Difference (I-J) Std. Error Sig. Factor 1 1.00 2.00 -.05878 .20756 .957 3.00 .14825 .20700 .754 2.00 1.00 .05878 .20756 .957 3.00 .20703* .05048 .000 3.00 1.00 -.14825 .20700 .754 2.00 -.20703* .05048 .000 Factor 3 1.00 2.00 .92323 .58820 .262 3.00 1.25432 .58662 .086 2.00 1.00 -.92323 .58820 .262 3.00 .33109 .14304 .047 3.00 1.00 -1.25432 .58662 .086 2.00 -.33109 .14304 .047 Table 7. Results of the ANOVA against Educational Aspiration ANOVA Sum of Square df Mean Square F Sig. Factor 1 Between Groups .984 2 .492 5.706 .004 Within Groups 11.383 132 .086 Total 12.367 134 Factor 2 Between Groups 5.728 2 2.864 3.483 .034 Within Groups 108.552 132 .822 Total 114.280 134 Factor 3 Between Groups 1.768 2 .884 1.265 .286 Within Groups 92.282 132 .699 Total 94.050 134 Factor 4 Between Groups 1.692 2 .846 1.502 .226 Within Groups 74.315 132 .563 Total 76.007 134 Factor 5 Between Groups .305 2 .152 .929 .398 Within Groups 21.651 132 .164 Total 21.956 134 Factor 6 Between Groups 1.850 2 .925 2.101 .126 Within Groups 58.132 132 .440 Total 59.982 134 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 - 75 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) Table 8. Results of the Post-hoc Analyses against Educational Aspiration Dependent Variable Educational Aspiration Mean Difference (I-J) Std. Error Sig. Factor 1 1.00 2.00 .04737 .07658 .810 3.00 .20977* .07893 .024 2.00 1.00 -.04737 .07658 .810 3.00 .16241* .05493 .010 3.00 1.00 -.20977* .07893 .024 2.00 -.16241* .05493 .010 Factor 2 1.00 2.00 -.38825 .23650 .232 3.00 .03225 .24374 .990 2.00 1.00 .38825 .23650 .232 3.00 .42050* .16964 .038 3.00 1.00 -.03225 .24374 .990 2.00 -.42050* .16964 .038 Results of the study have an agreement with the results of previous studies, which show a high level of academic stress experi- enced by S1-level students (McPherson, 2009; Oon, 2007; Suldo et al., 2009). These studies find that students have high academic stress due to their over-expectation despite their low levels of skills and abilities, for not being too enthusiastic with their academic activities and assignments because of their lack of interest in the subject contents, and because of health problems. If such academic stresses are not given adequate anticipation and solution, they can cause adverse effects on students since academic stresses may induce fatal impacts. One such impact is the high level of student drop-outs. This is in line with the results of previous studies by Rayle and Chung (2007) and Zajacova, Lynch, and Espenshade (2005). This is not intended to say that academic stresses cause drop-outs; this, however, shows that academic stresses make students have low levels of concentration that lead to a decline in their academic achievement. This decline in academic achievement eventually becomes the cause for students to repeat clas- ses, but unable to complete, and, eventually, fail academic requirements and drop out. Another problem that triggers students’ academic stress is their inability to complete the minimal competencies set up in the cur- riculum. This problem is often doubled by the heavy assignments and expectations imposed by the curriculum either because it is not quite realistic or because it is not quite well-devel- oped. In the same manner, the over-expec- tation of self and family becomes an acute source of academic stress. For most students, the achievement of a high GPA is a dead tar- get, outweighing any other thing. As a result, students will do anything, including loosening their muscles and brain when they are actually tight, in order to obtain high GPAs bringing about burn-outs and academic stress. This is in agreement with the results of a previous study by McPherson (2009). Other factors causing students’ academ- ic stress are parent-child relationships, trau- matic childhood experiences, peer pressure, financial matters, and self-expectancy. This is in agreement with the results of previous studies such as one by Suldo et al. (2009). From observation in the field, it is true that these factors exert a heavy influence on the psychology of people, including that of students. Another phenomenon to point out is that which suggests that female students, students with high GPAs, and students with high educational aspiration (such as of the S3 level), are found to have high academic de- mands, parent-child relationship, traumatic childhood experiences, peer pressure, finan- cial problems, and self-expectancy. This is identical with the findings of other previous studies such as by Misra and McKean (2000) and Zajacova et al. (2005). Conclusion The study departed from the objective identifying and describing sources of academ- ic stresses of students of the English Educa- tion Department, Yogyakarta State University https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 https://doi.org/10.21831/reid.v6i1.29567 Siwi Karmadi Kurniasih, Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, & Sudiyono 76 - Copyright © 2020, REiD (Research and Evaluation in Education), 6(1), 2020 ISSN: 2460-6995 (Online) (EED YSU). A total of 135 English Educa- tion Department students participated in the study. Results of the CFA analyses found six factors that were identified as sources of stu- dents’ academic stress. The six factors were academic demands, parent-child relationships, childhood traumatic experiences, peer pres- sure, financial matters, and self-expectancy. Further analyses showed that female students, students with high GPAs, and students with high academic aspirations reported higher measures of factors of academic stresses. 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