Perceived Stress and Anxiety Symptoms among Young Adults: A Quantitative Correlational Study Using the PSS-10 and GAD-7 with Companion Clinical Case Formulation
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Emerging adulthood (ages 18 to 30 years) represents a developmental window marked by academic pressure, early career transitions, financial uncertainty, and shifting familial expectations. This two-part research report presents (Part I) a quantitative correlational investigation of perceived stress and anxiety symptoms among young adults using the 10-item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10; Cohen et al., 1983) and the 7-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 2006), alongside (Part II) an illustrative supervised outpatient clinical case formulation demonstrating how brief screening instruments are contextualised within a comprehensive psychiatric history and Mental Status Examination (MSE). In Part I, data were collected through an anonymous English online survey using convenience and snowball sampling. A rigorous five-stage quality screening protocol filtered 153 raw exported rows down to N = 12 verified unique complete responses aged 18–30 years (mean age = 25.2 years, SD = 2.7; 91.7% male; 75.0% working professionals) after excluding rows without consent (n = 2), ages outside 18–30 (n = 53), rapid-submit automation clusters (n = 73), and repeated 17-item response patterns (n = 13). The mean PSS-10 score was 21.6 (SD = 4.8), indicating moderate perceived stress, and the mean GAD-7 score was 9.9 (SD = 3.0). Exactly 50.0% of respondents fell in the mild GAD-7 band (5–9), 41.7% in the moderate band (10–14), and 8.3% in the severe band (15–21), meaning 50.0% scored at or above the clinical screening cut-off of 10. Pearson's r between PSS-10 and GAD-7 was -0.06 (p > .05; negligible and statistically non-significant). Gender comparison (Welch's t) was not computed because one gender group had n < 2. In Part II, an anonymised adult outpatient training case (Ms. A, 24-year-old female postgraduate student) completed during a 72-hour supervised clinical psychology internship at Spandana Mind Hospital, Vijayawada, illustrates an 8-month anxiety-spectrum presentation with Grade 4 intellectual insight and a supervised management plan incorporating psychoeducation, sleep hygiene, cognitive restructuring, and crisis helpline referral (Tele-MANAS 14416).
Institution: Jain University
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7225004014