Stress, stressors, and academic performance among Asian students in Central California

Abstract

Stressors such as balancing school, work, and family life are common among college students.Asian and Asian American students may experience additional stressors including communication andlanguage, high expectations for academic excellence, and mental health concerns such as depression, alien-ation and discrimination. Therefore, Asian students may be susceptible to risky behaviors such as substanceabuse and suicide ideation. This investigation was conducted to assess stress among Asian and AsianAmerican students in relation to factors such as test anxiety, academic performance, financial difficul-ties, social support, family pressures, culture shock, and language barriers. The East Asian Student StressInventory (EASSI) instrument was administered to university students who identified themselves as Asianvia email at a mid-sized university in central California. Findings from a sample of 292 undergraduateand graduate students indicated that students experience stress from test anxiety, academic performance,financial difficulties, and social support.