Characterization of the stress level of university students using data mining algorithms

There is concern about the levels of stress faced by college students and their effects on mental health and academic performance. This study aimed to characterize academic stress levels in college students, using data mining algorithms to classify and predict risk patterns. Data were collected from 287 students using the SISCO Academic Stress Inventory, and classification algorithms and association rules were applied using WEKA software. The results revealed that 75.3% of the students experienced high stress levels, primarily linked to psychological reactions and academic demands. It also compared the predictive performance of 13 algorithms, where J48, LMT, and SimpleLogistic achieved classification accuracies above 89%, surpassing results previously reported in similar educational contexts. Association rule mining further showed that being single and childless was strongly correlated with elevated stress levels, highlighting demographic risk profiles often overlooked in earlier research. By integrating predictive modeling with demographic and behavioral factors, this study extended prior literature by showing how data mining can simultaneously classify and explain academic stress, offering actionable insights for universities to design targeted, evidence-based interventions.