The Post-Secondary Student Stressors Index: Proof of Concept and Implications for Use

Objective: This study demonstrates the utility of the Post-Secondary Student Stressors Index (PSSI), an instrument designed to identify and evaluate the sources of student stress. The PSSI is comprised of 46 stressors, rated by severity and frequency, across five domains: academics, learning environment, campus culture, interpersonal, and personal. Participants: Pilot testing of the tool was conducted among n = 535 post-secondary students enrolled at an Ontario university. Methods: Mean severity and frequency ratings were calculated for each stressor on the instrument. Results were plotted, and stratified by sex. T-tests for differences in means across sexes were calculated for each stressor. Results: Female students in this sample consistently rated nearly all stressors on the instrument as more severe than their male counterparts. Females also reported higher frequency ratings on average, indicating that they worried about stressors more often than did males. Domain-specific stressors are discussed. Conclusions: The PSSI can provide post-secondary institutions with the ability to improve the targeting of their mental health promotion and mental illness prevention efforts.