ACADEMIC STRESS AND ANXIETY AMONG UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS IN MALAYSIA

Abstract

Following the recent reopening of most universities in Malaysia, undergraduate students have shown high concerns in terms of academic stress and anxiety with the sudden transition from two years of online learning to a physical environment. Furthermore, students experience an increase in test anxiety due to the long-lost feeling of taking physical examinations and being in a hall with lecturers and other students, especially if the tests are used for evaluation with a pass or fail grade. In this study, we aim to investigate the relationship between academic stress and anxiety among undergraduate students in Malaysia. The cross-sectional study recruited participants using an online questionnaire which included demographics, questions assessing Academic Expectations of Stress Inventory (AESI), and Cognitive Test Anxiety Scale (CTAS). A total of 109 participants responded to the survey. The Pearson’s correlation showed that academic stress moderately correlated with anxiety (r = 0.772, p < 0.01). The Partial Least Squares (PLS) regression test showed academic stress was positively predicting anxiety (β = 0.781, p < 0.01).