RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN STRESS SOURCES AND POSITIVE WELL-BEING OF THE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS

Cristina Teodora Preoteasa, Catălina Murariu-Măgureanu, Anca Axante, Corina-Mona Buzea

DOI : 10.62610/RJOR.2025.2.17.43

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Stress of university students is multifactorial, linked to both academic and non-academic factors, and may impact on the psychological well-being of students and negatively affect their academic achievement and personal development. The aim of this study is to evaluate the relationship between stress sources and positive well-being of university students majoring in different fields. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on university students from Bucharest, Romania. Sources of stress were investigated using the Dental Environment Stress (DES) questionnaire, with or without clinical factors, depending on majoring field. The psychological well-being was assessed by WHO-Five Well-being Index (WHO-5). Results: Two hundred and sixty-two university students fully completed the questionnaire and were included in this study. DES and WHO-5 scores were rather different between schools, but examinations, fear of falling course or year, and the lack of time for relaxation were highly ranked stressors in all universities. Regression analysis indicated that DES scores significantly predicted the variance of WHO-5 scores, explaining a higher proportion of variance of it among the students majoring in Chemistry and Material Engineering than among the students majoring in Dentistry. Domains of DES strongly related to academics (i.e. academic work and educational environment for all students, and supplementary clinical factors for dental students) were the strongest predictors for students’ well-being in all majoring fields. Conclusions: In order to help students to maximize their potential, both personally and academic stressors should be identified and analyzed as impact. This knowledge may be used to understand and prevent some of students’ negative coping behavior to stress.