Stress is the interplay of a person with ones environment which is deemed by the individual as menacing or affecting ones potential, resource and wellbeing [1]. To that end, for a stress response to be occurred, there should always be coactions among internal and external factors. As a result, the same stimulus might trigger inconsistent responses among individuals. With regard to individual copying styles, manifestation of people to stress is commonly varied in each circumstance which is determined by past experience, individual characteristics, and prior copying history [2].
Tertiary level education may impose stress on students from many sources of stress such as different environments, lifestyle changes, academic burdens, and interpersonal relationships, all of which can lead to significant psychological dysfunctions [3].
There is a report of the rise in the prevalence of perceived stress in the course of professional study [4]. Previous studies reported a high incidence of perceived stress among higher education students, resulting poor academic performance, mental distress, withdrawal, and other health-related problems[5].
Several instruments had been employed to estimate the stress experienced by university students, Cohen and Williamson (1988) developed the perceived stress scale (PSS-10), which measures the degree to which one perceives aspects the degree to which one perceives aspects of one’s life as uncontrollable, unpredictable, and overloading. The original PSS comprises 14 items (PSS-14). Two shorten versions (PSS-10 and PSS-4) are also available which comprise 10 and 4 items selected from the PSS-14 respectively [6, 7].
The original PSS-10 was considered as a single construct. However, previous studies reported the presence of two dimensions of PSS-10 using principal component analysis [7–10]. In addition, confirmatory factor analysis in other studies indicated the two-factor dimensionalities appear to be a better fit [11, 12].
Several previous researches have examined the factor structure, validity, and reliability of PSS-10 among university students. A study conducted among Mezan-Aman University students in Ethiopia using the original PSS-10 found that the two-factor model is the most suitable to assess perceived stress [13]. Similarly, in another study conducted among Turkish university students to assess the psychometric property of PSS-10, the finding revealed adequate validity and reliability of the two-factor models [14]. In addition, a study among Chinese and Japanese university students also reported a two-factor model PSS-10 and its adequate validity and reliability[15, 16].
The PSS-10 has been translated into several languages including Japanese, Arabic, Malay, and Vietnamese [15, 17, 18]. As well as across many populations including chronic disease patients, police, military personal, and university students [19–22].
To the knowledge of the researchers, the perceived stress scale is not translated and validated in Amharic; a national language of more than 110 million populations. Therefore, the aim of this study is to translate and validate the Amharic version PSS-10 among military university students in Ethiopia.