AUTHOR=Simegn Wudneh , Yohannes Lamrot , Seid Abdulwase Mohammed , Kasahun Asmamaw Emagn , Sema Faisel Dula , Flatie Adane , Elias Asrat , Dagne Henok 

TITLE=Perceived stress and associated factors among university students in Ethiopia during the late stage of the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.978510

DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2022.978510

ISSN=1664-1078

ABSTRACT=Background: During times of extensive outbreaks of infectious diseases, all those impacted, particularly those subgroups of the community who are at an increased risk of mental health problems, may experience increased stress and mental health difficulties. University students are one such susceptible population and prone to experience high level of stress as compared to the general population. Therefore, this study aimed at assessing perceived stress and identifying their associated factors among University students in Ethiopia during the late stage of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Methods: Students were asked to fill out an online survey using Google forms that included consent, socio-demographic information, the UCLA-8 loneliness scale, the standard validated stress scale (PSS-10) questionnaire, and the Oslo 3-items Social Support Scale (OSSS-3) to assess social support. The study was collected from May 30 -June 30, 2021, then exported to SPSS 26. Descriptive and analytical statistics were done. Binary logistic regression were used to find associated factors, and variables with a p-value of 0.05 were statistically significant variables.
Results: Four hundred and twenty-six university students took part in this survey, with two hundred and sixty-eight (62.9%) of them being male. The age of participants ranges from 18-37. Health-related departments accounted for 37.1 % of participants, while other non-health-related departments accounted for 62.9 percent. The prevalence of stress was 18.3 percent in this study.
University students who are extremely susceptible to COVID-19, who have sleeping problem, poor self-efficacy to prevent COVID-19 and those who are lonely were significantly associated with perceived stress.   
Conclusions: Stress was prevalent among University students in Ethiopia during the late stage of COVID-19 pandemic. Extremely susceptible to COVID-19, sleeping problem, poor self-efficacy, and loneliness were identified factors for stress. The University should offer opportunities for safe social connection, counseling and guidance among University students.