Stres Mahasiswa Muslim yang Tinggal di Pulau Jawa Ditinjau dari Kompetensi Antarbudaya, Gender, dan Usia

Stress is a widely recognised psychological issue affecting university students, including Muslim students residing on the island of Java, Indonesia. The present study investigates the influence of intercultural competence on stress levels within this population and further examines variations in stress based on demographic factors such as age and gender. A total of 205 Muslim students (76.1% female), aged between 18 and 26 years, participated in the study by completing the Intercultural Competence Scale alongside the stress subscale of the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales (DASS-21). Quantitative data were analysed using a combination of statistical techniques, including simple regression, multiple regression, independent samples t-tests, and analysis of variance (ANOVA), conducted via JASP version 0.18.3. The findings of this study indicate that intercultural competence significantly contributes to the reduction of stress among students (β = –.15, p < .05). While no statistically significant differences in stress levels were observed across age groups (p = .76), gender-based analysis revealed that female students reported higher levels of stress compared to their male counterparts (p = .03, d = –.36). These results highlight the role of intercultural competence as a protective factor in mitigating academic stress, particularly within the context of cross-cultural dynamics in higher education environments. In light of these results, the study recommends the implementation of institutional programmes aimed at fostering intercultural skills, the active involvement of parents in cultivating values of tolerance from an early developmental stage, and the formulation of educational policies that prioritise intercultural competence as a strategic approach to maintaining student mental health in the globalised academic context.