Tracas quotidiens des étudiants de première année de grandes écoles : liens avec la santé mentale perçue et la qualité de vie

RésuméL’entrée dans une grande école, avec les nombreux changements occasionnés, peut être considérée comme une situation potentiellement stressante. Nous avons donc souhaité identifier les difficultés rencontrées par les étudiants inscrits en première année et leurs éventuelles répercussions sur leur santé et leur qualité de vie. Les résultats obtenus montrent que les tracas les plus fréquents et les plus gênants sont liés à la réussite dans les études (examens), à la gestion du temps (ne pas avoir le temps de faire ce que l’on voudrait faire), aux relations interpersonnelles (éloignement d’un être cher) et à la santé (sommeil et réveil) avec des répercussions non négligeables sur leur santé et leur qualité de vie. En effet, les résultats soulignent l’existence de corrélations entre non seulement les tracas quotidiens et la détresse psychologique, mais également entre les tracas quotidiens et la qualité de vie.

Keeping in mind that gaining access to the first year of French “grandes écoles” is a potential stressful situation, we have studied the daily hassles during the first six months of adaptation to “grandes écoles” life. The results show that the most frequent and most intense hassles are related to success in their studies (exams), time management (lack of time to do what they want to do), interpersonal relationships (separation from a loved one) and health (sleep and wake-up). In addition, the higher the levels of students’ hassles, the higher their emotional distress and the lower their quality of life. These results are discussed with reference to the literature on the subject.ObjectiveThis study aims to identify the daily hassles of students enrolled in the first year of the prestigious French “grandes écoles” and to assess the relationship between these hassles and their perceived mental health and quality of life.DesignData were collected from 169 first-year students in these schools during the first semester of studies.Main outcome measuresDaily hassles were evaluated using a specific scale for students. Mental health and quality of life were evaluated by using the GHQ-12 and the WHOQOL-26.ResultsThe results show that the most frequent and most intense hassles are related to success in their studies (exams), time management (lack of time to do what they want to do), interpersonal relationships (separation from a loved one) and health (sleep and wake-up). In addition, the higher the levels of students’ hassles, the higher their emotional distress and the lower their quality of life. These results are discussed with reference to the literature on the subject.ConclusionThese results suggest that daily hassles were associated with a specific period of life and had a significant effect on the students’ mental health.