Comparative Relationships Between Perceived Stress and Sleep Quality on Psychological Well-being of Students in Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo Ondo State, Nigeria

The transition to higher education poses significant challenges for students, which can adversely affect their psychological well-being. This study examines the influence of perceived stress and sleep quality on psychological well-being among students Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo, Ondo State. The study adopted a cross-sectional survey design. A purposive and convenience random sampling techniques were used to select 379 students (169 males, 210 females) aged 18 to 28 years (Mean = 22.68; SD = 1.84). The Psychological Well-being Scale (PWS), Sleep Quality Scale (SQS), and Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) were used to elicit information from the respondents, which reported a good internal consistency Cronbach Alpa 0.93 -PWB, 0.95-SQS and 0.91- PSS. A two-step hierarchical multiple regression analysis was used to test the three hypotheses in the study. The results indicated that sleep quality significantly predicts psychological well-being (β = .14, t = 2.68, p < .01), while perceived stress does not (β = .03, t = .6, p > .05) predict the psychological well-being of students in the study area. The joint prediction of sleep quality and perceived stress was also significant [F (1,376) = 3.78; p < .01]. the study concluded that sleep quality and perceived stress combined, will significantly predict psychological wellbeing of polytechnic students in the study area. The study recommends targeted interventions among Rufus Giwa polytechnic students to improve their sleep quality and stress management to enhance their psychological well-being.