Academic Stress, Psychological Resilience, and Psychological Well-Being among Undergraduate Students: A Gender-Based Study

Abstract

Academic stress represents a pervasive challenge among Indian undergraduate students navigating competitive higher education systems and collectivist familial expectations. This literature review synthesizes empirical studies examining relationships among academic stress, psychological resilience, and psychological well-being, with particular attention to gender differences among non-medical college populations. Analysis reveals consistent patterns where perceived stress undermines eudaimonic well-being while resilience buffers these effects through family support and positive reappraisal mechanisms. Females consistently report elevated stress perception yet maintain equivalent overall well-being through relational coping strengths, resolving prior methodological contradictions in the literature. Critical gaps persist including predominant focus on medical students, cross-sectional designs limiting causal understanding, gender sampling imbalances, and neglect of parental pressure primacy characteristic of Indian contexts. Findings validate integrated transactional-socioecological frameworks and support institutional mental health initiatives emphasizing family-focused resilience training. Longitudinal investigation of familial stress trajectories among general undergraduates remains essential for comprehensive intervention development.