Vol. 5, Issue 5, Part B (2019)

Background: Dental students are subjected to different kinds of experiences which makes them vulnerable to undergo a lot of stress. Source of stress among dental students is multifactorial, arising from the academic expectations.

Aim: To to determine the potential sources of stress in undergraduate dental students.

Methods: This study was conducted at two dental hospitals and teaching hospitals of Jammu region in the month of July 2016 using self administered questionnaire. Responses of 220 students were included in the study.

Results: Out of a total 400 dental students, 220 returned the questionnaires giving an overall response rate of 55%. Subjects cited frequency of examination and performance in examination as most commonly cited sources of stress. Non availability of adequate learning material and competition with peers were the stressors cited as almost or never by the study subjects. Becoming a doctor was rated as most severe stressor. Quality of food in mess was the most commonly reported health related stressors. Again quality of food in mess and class attendance were rated as most severe.

Conclusion: Findings of present study suggest that interventions are needed to tackle stress and improve dental students’ physical and psychological well-being.