Estrés académico y reacciones en estudiantes mexicanos de educación superior

Academic stress is a state experienced by students when they are subjected to a set of demands they cannot cope with, or find difficult to cope with because they are beyond their own resources. The purpose was to identify the presence of academic stress in students in the penultimate semester of the Bachelor's Degree in Accounting and Administration at a Mexican public university; as well as to identify the influence that academic stress has on performance, as well as on physical, psychological, and behavioral reactions, in addition to identifying the influence that these reactions have on academic performance. A quantitative, descriptive, and correlational study in a sample of 359 students detected a predominant level of moderate stress. Physical reactions ranked first in importance, with drowsiness being the most prominent. The predominant psychological reaction was lack of concentration. The behavioral reaction that most affected students was a reluctance to complete schoolwork. Academic stress has a significantly negative influence on performance; higher stress levels lower academic performance. Academic stress has a significantly positive influence on physical, psychological, and behavioral reactions. In turn, these reactions influence academic performance. These results alert authorities and teachers to address academic stress to improve students' quality of life.