The measurement of stressful events in Chinese college students

Abstract The Chinese College Stress Scale was developed to ascertain stress in university students. Results suggested that the psychometric properties of the Chinese College Stress Scale were satisfactory. Overall, student stress was primarily related to academic, personal, and negative life events. Approximately 8% of Chinese students exhibited high stress associated with attending the university whereas 74% exhibited low stress, and approximately 18% did not report any stress. The general pattern of stressful college events is similar to that found in American studies; however, the rank order of stressors is somewhat different between these findings and the results of American studies. The top academic stressors for Chinese university students were low learning efficiency and competition among students whereas the top academic stressors for American students were related to examinations. Personal hassles for the Chinese students involved concerns that they were not being taught or educated properly and inadequate social skills. In contrast, the major personal stressors of American students were found to be associated with intimate relationships and parental conflicts. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Psychol Schs 42: 315–323, 2005.