The Relationship Between Financial Conditions and Stress Levels Among College Students
Keywords:
Cross-Sectional Study, Financial Conditions, Financial Stress, Self-Reported Stress, University Students.Abstract
Financial circumstances may contribute to psychological strain during university education, although their relationship cannot be established from descriptive summaries alone. This study described financial conditions and self-reported stress experiences among 30 university students using a quantitative cross-sectional design and a Google Forms questionnaire. Five financial-condition statements and five stress-experience statements were assessed using a five-point Likert scale. Respondents were predominantly female (83.3%), enrolled in their fifth semester (66.7%), living in student boarding houses (56.7%), unemployed (80.0%), and primarily supported by parents or family (70.0%). Descriptive analysis included response frequencies, percentages, weighted scores, and means. The overall financial-condition mean was 3.09, with the highest score for meeting daily needs (3.50) and the lowest for managing unexpected expenses (2.87). The overall stress-experience mean was 3.27, with difficulty relaxing and difficulty concentrating receiving the highest scores (3.50 each). The difference between the two overall means was 0.18 points, but the scales measured distinct constructs with different scoring directions. Because only aggregated item frequencies were available, individual financial and stress scores could not be paired, and correlation testing was not possible. Future studies require linked responses and validated instruments to determine whether financial conditions are associated with student stress in more diverse university populations.
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