STRESS AMONG SECONDARY SCHOOL STUDENTS: THE ROLE OF LOCALE AND STUDY HABITS

Abstract

The present study examined stress among secondary school students in relation to locale and study habits using a 2×3 factorial design. A descriptive survey method was employed. The sample comprised 1100 secondary school students selected from four districts of Himachal Pradesh through incidental sampling. Data were collected using the Students Stress Scale (Akhtar, 2011) and Study Habits Scale (Rani & Zaidka, 2015). Two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was applied to examine main and interaction effects. The findings revealed no significant main effect of locale on stress, F(1, 1094) = 0.00, p > .05. Similarly, no significant main effect of study habits was found, F(2, 1094) = 0.040, p > .05. The interaction effect between locale and study habits was also not significant, F(2, 1094) = 0.381, p > .05. The results indicate that stress levels among secondary school students are not significantly influenced by geographical locale or variations in study habits. The findings suggest the need for broader psychosocial interventions beyond demographic and study-pattern variables to address student stress.