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The present study aims at finding the relationship between depression, anxiety and stress among women college students. The mental health of university students is an area of increasing concern worldwide. College students go through significant negative emotions, such as depression and anxiety, especially when they have problems in achievement. Added to the stress of preparing for tests and exams, they also go through the stress of failure and the other implications such as facing the wrath of parents and teachers. A study by Bayram and Bilgel (2008) showed that anxiety and stress scores were higher among female students. Emotional and cognitive reactions to stressors occurred more frequently and females experienced higher self-imposed stress and more physiological reactions such as sweating, stuttering and headaches to stressors than males (Misra & McKean, 2000). Expost facto research design was used for the study. The sample consisted of 446 college going women, currently pursuing their second year of under graduation in city colleges. The tool used was the DASS scale by Lovibond and Lovibond (1995), measuring depression, anxiety and stress. Correlation was found using the Pearson's Product moment method. Results indicate that depression, anxiety and stress were positively correlated among women college students.
Keywords: depression, anxiety, stress, college students
Mental health in adolescence
Adolescence is a developmental period that is filled with many challenges, especially for the teenager of today's world. It is considered to be a period of vulnerability for most individuals as they often partake in high risk behaviours. Further, those individuals who are in their early college years are faced with the developmental challenges of this life phase which can be complicated by a variety of stresses (Ahem, 1996).
Adolescents are engaged in a search for identity and meaning in their lives. They have also been regarded as a unique group with a wide range of difficulties and problems in their transition to adulthood. Academic pressure, intra personal and interpersonal difficulties, death of loved ones, illnesses, and loss of relationships have been found to be significant stressors in young people.
While it is a normal part of development in adolescence to often experience distressing and disabling emotions, there is an increasing incidence of mental illness globally, mainly because of the breakdown of traditional social and...