THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ACADEMIC STRESS AND EMOTIONAL EATING IN HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS

Abstract

Academic stress may be associated with maladaptive eating behaviors among adolescents. This study aimed to examine the relationship between academic stress and emotional eating among high school students in Ponorogo, Indonesia. A quantitative correlational study with a cross-sectional design was conducted among 171 Grade 12 students at State Senior High School 1 Babadan, selected through proportionate random sampling from a population of 298 students. Academic stress and emotional eating were measured using the Educational Stress Scale for Adolescents (ESSA) and the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ), respectively. Data were analyzed using Spearman’s rank correlation test. Moderate academic stress and moderate emotional eating were reported by 49.7% and 56.1% of participants, respectively. A significant positive association was identified between academic stress and emotional eating (\(r_s = 0.320\), \(p < 0.001\)), indicating that higher academic stress was associated with greater emotional eating tendencies. These findings highlight the importance of addressing academic stress and emotional eating in school-based adolescent health promotion. Further longitudinal studies are needed to clarify the temporal relationship between these variables and inform targeted preventive strategies.