Impact of Perceived Stress and Perceived Social Support on the Academic Performance of Part Time Employed Undergraduates

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of variables like perceived stress and perceived social support on the academic performance of part time employed undergraduate students, aiming to expound the psychological and social factors that influence their academic success. The study uses three validated measures: the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10; Cohen et al., 1983), measuring subjective ratings of stress; the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS; Zimlet et al., 1988), measuring perceived support from family, friends, and significant others; and the Academic Performance Scale (Schmitt et al., 2008), measuring self-reported academic performance. Aided by a non-directional hypothesis, the research suggests that there is an association between perceived stress, perceived social support and academic performance without assuming the nature of these relations, in an attempt to ensure unbiased exploration of data to the maximum extent. A cross sectional study design was opted to conduct this study. A sample of around 200 undergraduate students was used, ranging from 18-25 years of age, through a purposive sampling technique. Pearson product moment correlation analysis showed results that perceived stress proved to be negatively correlated with academic performance, while perceived social support showed a positive correlation with academic performance. Furthermore, perceived stress was found to be a significant negative predictor of academic performance, while perceived social support was found to be a significant positive predictor of academic performance.