2026 ECNP Congress

PS01-1247

Intra-semester dynamics of academic stress, perceived stress, academic engagement and sleep composition in university students: preliminary findings

Juan Luis Castillo-Navarrete — C. Bustos Navarrete, P. Rojas-Cárdenas, C. Quintana-Pino · Universidad de Concepción, Facultad de Medicina, Concepción, Chile

2026 ECNP Congress

Background

Stress is an adaptive response to environmental demands, mediated by activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the autonomic nervous system (ANS). When sustained over time, it may affect cognitive, emotional and behavioural regulation. Academic stress (AS) refers to a specific response to demands of student life, including overload, assessments, time pressure, performance expectations and difficulties coping with academic tasks. AS has been operationalised through the SISCO-II Academic Stress Inventory (SISCO-II-AS), a multidimensional instrument specific to academic contexts [1,2]. Although related to general perceived stress, assessed by the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-14) [3], AS is not an equivalent construct. This preliminary analysis derives from a broader longitudinal line of research integrating psychometric, behavioural, sleep and psychophysiological indicators associated with the HPA axis and ANS [4].

Aims

To examine intra-semester changes in AS among university students, its relationship with general perceived stress and academic engagement (AE) [5], and its association with objectively measured sleep composition.

Methods

A longitudinal observational study with repeated measurements was conducted over three cycles during the second semester of the 2025 academic year: start, midpoint and end of semester. Sixty students from the Faculty of Medicine, University of Concepción, Chile, participated: 41 women and 19 men, mean age 21.4 years (SD = 1.2). AS was assessed using the SISCO-II-AS, general perceived stress using the PSS-14, and AE using the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale for Students (UWES-S). Sleep composition was recorded using smart wristbands, including total sleep duration, rapid eye movement sleep, light sleep, deep sleep and nocturnal awakenings. Primary analyses included repeated measures analysis of variance and paired comparisons with Benjamini-Hochberg correction. Secondary analyses included cross-sectional, person-centred intra-individual and change correlations, and linear mixed models decomposing between-subject and intra-individual effects.

Results

The total SISCO-II-AS score showed significant intra-semester change, F(2,106) = 6.29; p = 0.003; η²p = 0.106, with a more pronounced increase between cycles 2 and 3, Δ = +3.93; dz = +0.41; q = 0.009. AE also varied significantly, F(2,110) = 4.88; p = 0.009; η²p = 0.081, decreasing early between cycles 1 and 2, Δ = -3.71; dz = -0.36; q = 0.015. The PSS-14 showed no significant group mean variation, p = 0.187, but was associated with the SISCO-II-AS cross-sectionally, ρ = 0.46 to 0.57, intra-individually, r = 0.24; q = 0.014, and in change analyses between cycles 1 and 3, ρ = 0.47; q = 0.003. Mixed models confirmed between-subject, β = +0.54; p < 0.001, and intra-individual effects, β = +0.21; p = 0.022. SISCO-II-AS stressors were associated with more nocturnal awakenings, r = +0.22; q = 0.023.

Conclusions

Preliminary findings support the sensitivity of the SISCO-II-AS for detecting intra-semester changes in AS and suggest that AS can be empirically distinguished from general perceived stress. The association between academic stressors and night-time awakenings suggests a link with sleep fragmentation. These results support continued longitudinal follow-up and integration of psychophysiological indicators associated with the HPA axis and ANS.

References

  1. Castillo-Navarrete JL, Guzmán-Castillo A, Bustos C, Zavala W, Vicente B. Propiedades psicométricas del Inventario SISCO-II de estrés académico. Revista Iberoamericana de Diagnóstico y Evaluación – e Avaliação Psicológica. 2020;56(3):101-116. doi:10.21865/RIDEP56.3.08
  2. Castillo-Navarrete JL, Guzmán-Castillo A, Bustos C, Vicente B. Academic stress in college students: Descriptive analyses and scoring of the SISCO-II inventory. PeerJ. 2024;12:e16980. doi:10.7717/peerj.16980
  3. Cohen S, Kamarck T, Mermelstein R. A global measure of perceived stress. Journal of Health and Social Behavior. 1983;24(4):385-396. doi:10.2307/2136404
  4. Castillo-Navarrete JL, Guzmán-Castillo A, Bustos C, Vicente B. Longitudinal analysis of academic stress and its effects on salivary cortisol, alpha-amylase, and academic outcomes: Study protocol. PLOS ONE. 2024;19(12):e0315650. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0315650
  5. Schaufeli WB, Bakker AB. UWES – Utrecht Work Engagement Scale: Test manual. Utrecht University, Department of Psychology; 2003.