Hacia un modelo causal de las dimensiones del estrés académico en estudiantes de Enfermería

Abstract

Academic stress is defined as that generated by the proper demands of an academic context, without the intervention of non-academic factors. The aim of this work is to propose a structural model of those dimensions which account for academic stress in university students. The study was based on a non-probabilistic sample consisting of 138 first-year Nursing students. An instrument was developed to evaluate the level of stress of a student as well as the perceived intensity of the stressors in relation to each of the subjects that are being taken. Subsequently, a causal model of the dimensions of academic stress in Nursing students was formulated. The instrument evaluated with sufficient reliability ( of Cronbach = 0.771) and validity the relationship that takes place between the stressors commonly found in academic life and stress levels perceived by the student as caused by the subjects that he studies. The proposed model presented an acceptable goodness of fit as it can estimate all parameters positively and significantly. Therefore, it can be considered to be consistent with the empirical information obtained from the work sample. It is possible to affirm that the hypothetical system of relations proposed in the model represents a plausible explanation for academic stress in university students. The dimensions or academic stressors which explain such stress (obligatory assignments, academic overload, perception of the teacher and perception of the subject) will be susceptible of intervention in order to control the intensity with which they are perceived by the students, thus affecting two fundamental aspects during the development of their studies: their psychological well-being and their academic performance.