The Prevalence of Psychological Stress and Its Associated Factors Among Secondary School Teachers in Samarahan And Asajaya District

• Main Author: Mardhiyyah, Azmi
• Format: Thesis
• Language: English; English
• Published: Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) 2020
• Subjects: BF Psychology
• Online Access: http://ir.unimas.my/id/eprint/37739/

The 2015 National Health and Morbidity Survey (NHMS 2015) reported that the prevalence of Malaysian adults with mental health problems showed an increasing trend with nearly three times from 1996 to 2015. Psychological stress is one of the important contributors to mental health problems in Malaysia. A wide range of occupations have been associated with psychological stress with the teaching profession has been considered as one of the most stressful jobs. This study aims to determine the prevalence of psychological stress and its associated factors among secondary school teachers. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted among secondary school teachers in Samarahan and Asajaya district using selfadministered questionnaires. The status of psychological stress was measured using the Malay. version of DASS-21. Teachers Stress Inventory was adapted to identify the psychosocial factors. This study used Chi-square, and logistic regression to test for the association of the variables. Results: The overall prevalence of psychological stress from this study was 19.5%. Out of 241 teachers, 9.1% had mild stress, 7.1% had moderate stress, and 3.3% had severe to very severe stress. The prevalence of psychological stress was significant among younger teachers, single, divorced or widowed, and those with least household income. Only the years of experience has a significant relationship with psychological stress among occupational factors. From logistic regression, four elements were selected as the predictors for mental stress, notably household income, anxiety, depression and time management. Conclusion: The burden of psychological stress among school teachers can be associated with either individual factors or work-related factors. The responsibility in managing mental stress among teachers does not lie with the individual but at every level in the organisation. The surveillance systems for early detection of psychological stress can be implemented at the school level.