[School stress and health disorders of post-elementary school adolescents]

The aim of the study was to examine influence of school stress on level of health and health disorders in adolescence. The data were collected from students often post-elementary schools in Warsaw The investigation were carried on in two stages, when adolescents attended second grade (783 students aged 14-15 years), and in the next year, when they attended third grade (804 students aged 15-16 years). Four indicators measured severity of school stress: (1) change of school, (2) difficulties in learning, (3) lack of support from teacher (4) dislike to go to school. Seven indicators were accepted as indicators of the level of health and health disorders: (1) self-assessment of health status, (2) physical well-being, (3) psychical well-being, (4) sick absenteeism during the last month, (5) frequency of staying at home or in hospital during the last year due to health disorders, (6) frequency of being in contact with physician during the last year (7) frequency of intake medicines. The first three of them were assumed as subjective indicators, and the further four as objective indicators. The analysis found out that: (1) relatively more girls than boys experienced dislike to go to school, (2) students, who changed school, had difficulties in learning, had negative relation with teacher or dislike to go to school, in comparison to those, who did not notice these problems, in general, lower assessed their health and well-being and more frequently suffered from health disorders, (3) subjective indicators of health were much more associated with school stress than objective indicators. Simultaneously, the summarized rank scale of school stress was elaborated.